‘Spurs’ best player’… Alasdair Gold hails ‘8/10’ Tottenham ace who won five ground duels v Galatasaray

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Tottenham Hotspur suffered their first Europa League defeat of the season as Galatasaray recorded a 3-2 win over Spurs on Thursday evening.

Ange Postecoglou’s charges rode their luck for much of the evening and could have easily lost by a more comprehensive scoreline.

However, Tottenham did well to get back to within a goal as Galatasaray began tiring, and came close to equalising in injury-time.

Yunus Akgun opened the scoring for the hosts after just six minutes, but Will Lankshear equalised with his first Spurs senior goal in the 19th minute.

However, Victor Osimhen went on to grab a first-half brace to leave Tottenham trailing 3-1 at the break.

Things got worse for Tottenham on the hour mark when Lankshear, already on a booking, was sent off for a rash tackle.

To their credit, Spurs pulled a goal back in the 69th minute as Dominic Solanke netted his third in three games and fifth of the season.

Tottenham pushed for an equaliser, with Dejan Kulusevski missing a golden chance late on, but ultimately couldn’t get over the line.

Not many Spurs players impressed on the day, but there was one player in particular who could hold his head up high at full-time.

READ MORE: Tottenham fans react to Will Lankshear display against Galatasaray as Spurs gem scores and gets sent off

Alasdair Gold praises Tottenham midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur for Galatasaray display

The player in question is Rodrigo Bentancur, who did well after replacing Brennan Johnson at the start of the second half.

Football.london’s Alasdair Gold gave the Uruguay international an 8 out of 10 rating for his efforts on the night.

“Spurs’ best player with an excellent performance in the centre of the park when he came on, driving the team forward,” wrote Gold.

Likewise, Dan Kilpatrick of the Evening Standard gave Bentancur a score of 8 out of 10.

He wrote: “Added some much needed poise and control to the midfield after the break, and made some important tackles and blocks at the back.”

The Spurs News also enjoyed Bentancur’s display and gave him one of the better ratings on the night.

Bentancur stats v Galatasaray

Bentancur took 42 touches of the ball and completed 24 of his 30 passes for an 80 percent accuracy rating.

He also completed two of his four dribbling attempts and won five of his nine ground duels on the night.

Bentancur chipped in defensively too, with three tackles, three blocks, and one goal-line clearance, as per Sofascore.

Tottenham have one more game before the international break, hosting Ipswich Town in the Premier League on Sunday.