Tottenham’s poor record at St James’ Park continued as they were defeated 2-1.
Ange Postecoglou’s side made the trip to Newcastle this afternoon with last season’s thrashing fresh in their mind.
Having been smashed 4-0 and 6-1 in their last two visits to St James’ Park, Tottenham fans entered today’s fixture with not much optimism.
So Spurs supporters would have been fearing the worst when the Magpies took the lead in the 37th minute, thanks to a smart finish from Harvey Barnes.
The Lilywhites however would get themselves back into the game just after half-time as Dan Burn bundled the ball into his own net.
As the minutes wore on Tottenham seemed the most likely to go on and win, they would fail to find the cutting edge though as Eddie Howe’s side grabbed a late winner through Alexander Isak.
Amid all the frustration and disappointment there are a few things we learned from the game and The Spurs News highlights them here.
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Possession doesn’t win football matches
One of the main takeaways from Tottenham’s defeat to Newcastle was that possession ultimately does not equal goals. The Lilywhites controlled the majority of the ball, racking up 66% in possession stats but they failed to take advantage of their control and ultimately let the game slip away from them late on.
It also seemed like a repeat of the Leicester game two weeks ago, chance after chance but Spurs failed to put the game to bed. If Tottenham are to progress this season, they must learn to kill games off otherwise we are going to see a repeat of this afternoon on a number of occasions this season.
Cristian Romero’s disappointing display
Having won the Copa America with Argentina this summer, many Spurs supporters hoped Cristian Romero could carry that fine form into the new season. Three games in however, Romero has failed to impress arguably being at fault for all three of the goals Tottenham have conceded so far this campaign.
The defender left Jamie Vardy unmarked on the opening day and this afternoon he decided to fly out of the defensive line, leaving goalscorer Harvey Barnes alone in the box.
Romero has always been erratic but he simply must iron out these mistakes if Tottenham are to achieve anything notable this season.
Brennan Johnson earns himself Spurs starting spot
One of the few bright spots of today’s defeat was Brennan Johnson’s cameo off the bench. Ange Postecoglou decided to start Heung-min Son and Wilson Odobert on the flanks but the pair ultimately failed to provide the goods.
The Welshman was introduced at half-time, replacing Pape Matar Sarr with Dejan Kulusevski moving into the midfield. The winger was a constant threat throughout giving both Lloyd Kelly and Lewis Hall a tough time down the right-hand flank.
It would be no surprise to see Johnson return to the starting eleven against Arsenal next week.
Timo Werner’s lack of impact
As Spurs chased the game, Postecoglou looked to his bench in an effort to rescue a result. Timo Werner was brought on in the 74th minute tasked with creating something for the Lilywhites. The German however failed to provide any notable impact.
Having re-signed for Tottenham this summer on another loan deal, Werner must start providing the goods for the North London outfit, otherwise, his loan spell may fade into nothingness.
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