Wolves 4-2 Tottenham: Spurs suffer 17th defeat after being dismantled

Defeat number 17 of Tottenham’s shambolic Premier League campaign was one to emphasise what we knew already.

Match Events

That they have long since given up on this competition and that everything hinges on Thursday night in Frankfurt.

The Europa League is the last vestige of respectability, and yet careless and untidy performances like this one are beginning to encapsulate much of what has gone wrong for Ange Postecoglou.

Wolverhampton Wanderers were excellent. Quicker of mind and deed all over the pitch, bristling with a purpose the visitors lacked and worth their fourth successive victory.

They continue to build and climb away from the bottom under Vitor Pereira.

Spurs though, were terrible from error-strewn start by goalkeeper Gugliemlo Vicario to a half-hearted ending, when they briefly threatened to make a game of it only to gift the fourth Wolves goal to Matheus Cunha.

Perhaps it all started with Postecoglou’s team selection, six changes to hint at players taking a rest before flying to Germany in the week.

Captain Heung-min Son and Wilson Odobert were spared the journey to Wolverhampton, left at behind with injuries but are expected to be fit for the Europa League.

Postecoglou, for the second time in four days, assumed his position on the touchline to see his team make an atrocious start. Against Eintracht Frankfurt on Thursday, they conceded within six minutes but here Spurs were behind in 86 seconds.

Jean-Ricner Bellegarde clipped over a free kick from the Wolves left and Vicario punched it down to Ait-Nouri, who volleyed it down, skidding off the turf and into the net from the edge of the penalty area.

Vicario complained but the goal survived a long VAR check and soon after play got going again, the Spurs keeper was making another mistake, this time with the ball at his feet.

His miscued pass led to a chance which Jorgen Strand Larsen fired narrowly wide while sitting on the ground.

Tottenham improved and found a better tempo midway through the first half. Yves Bissouma forced a save from Jose Sa and Brennan Johnson fired over on the turn after a pass from Cristian Romero.

James Maddison grew into the game, but Spurs conceded a second before the interval. Once again Vicario was culpable, pushing a header by Marshall Munetsi against Spence, who was helpless as the ball hit him and rebounded into the net from close range.

Vicario might claim to have been distracted by Strand Larsen’s run across his eye line, trying to deflect Munetsi’s header, but the Norwegian striker made no contact.

Postecoglou resisted the urge to make changes at half time but replaced two of his three midfielders soon afterwards.

Rodrigo Bentancur and Lucas Bergvall sharpened Spurs up, and they reduced the deficit when Tel tapped in a low cross from Johnson which Nelson Semedo had inexplicably tried to clear with a backheel and missed.

Five minutes later and it appeared as if shambolic defending was contagious when Cristian Romero, among Tottenham’s better players until that point, took a poor touch as he swept up danger and was dispossessed.

Ait-Nouri took the ball from Romero and crossed for Larsen who converted a simplest chance for his 12th goal of the season, his fifth in the last four games.

Matheus Cunha, back from his latest four-match ban and having antagonised Wolves fans with a social media post about following his dreams on the eve of this came, came off the bench to a mixed reception.

Richarlison had scored Tottenham’s second and briefly threatened to make it an anxious closing period for the home side.

Cunha, who also went close with a free kick, scored the fourth for Wolves, taking the ball from Bergvall and outpacing Ben Davies before finding the net.

Line-ups

Wolves XI: Doherty, Semedo, Jose Sa, Jean-Ricner Bellegarde, Marshall Munetsi, Jørgen Strand Larsen, Rayan Aït-Nouri, Toti Gomes, Emmanuel Agbadou, João Gomes, André

Subs: Sarabia, Daniel Bentley, Hwang Hee-Chan, Santiago Bueno, Matheus Cunha, Boubacar Traoré, Rodrigo Gomes, Nasser Djiga, Mateus Mané

Tottenham XI: Ben Davies, Maddison, Solanke, Vicario, Bissouma, Cristian Romero, Spence, Brennan Johnson, Pape Sarr, Tel, Gray

Subs: Bentancur, Richarlison, Kulusevski, Porro, Udojie, Van de Ven, Kinsky, Bergvall, Moore