Spurs 2-1 Brighton: Universal praise sends Gilmour to top of ratings
There is no love lost between Tottenham and Chelsea. That makes it quite telling that ex-Blues midfielder Billy Gilmour came in for praise even from home supporters for his performance which put him top of the player ratings as Brighton were beaten 2-1 at Spurs.
Gilmour was central to the Albion playing some scintillating football in North London, zipping the ball around in one-touch triangles which left Spurs dizzy at times.
He did not deserve to be on the losing side, let alone in such cruel manner as falling to defeat in the 96th minute.
Gilmour had been withdrawn five minutes before Brennan Johnson scored that late, late winner for Tottenham as Brighton threw on Benicio Baker-Boaitey in a bold double change along with Carlos Baleba to try and take the three points themselves.
The Scottish international was not the only Seagull to catch the eye of home fans, seemingly. They were also raving about Jan Paul van Hecke, who was only 0.11 points before Gilmour in the ratings.
Van Hecke did such a good job frustrating James Maddison that Spurs’ moody number 10 ended up booked for a terrbile first half foul, after which he sarcastically applauded referee Samuel Barrott.
In a season where officials are meant to be clamping down on dissent, Maddison could consider himself lucky to stay on the pitch.
Three other players along with Gilmour and Van Hecke scored above seven in what was a decent team showing bar the late collapse, which was entirely preventable with better game management.
Such risks are part and parcel of DeZerbiBall, however. Here are your Spurs 2-1 Brighton player ratings.
Jason Steele – 7.33
The continuation of the controversial goalkeeper rotation policy meant Steele was recalled in place of Bart Verbruggen. This sparked a mini-meltdown on Twitter when the teams were announced, only for Steele to have a fine afternoon between the posts. Made two brilliant first half saves from Richarlison and Maddison, whilst there was nothing he could do about either goal.
Tariq Lamptey – 6.33
Made a blistering start to the game by sending Danny Welbeck away for an effort requiring an excellent save from Spurs goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario inside the opening 60 seconds. Some concern when he was taken off late on with another injury.
Jan Paul van Hecke – 7.89
Outstanding in dealing with Maddison; when do you ever see a defender from an away side pressing an attacking midfield 75 yards down the pitch in the final 15 minutes of a game locked at 1-1? You could criticise him and Lewis Dunk for being caught miles out of position as Spurs broke to score the winner, but that is part and parcel of the way the Albion play.
Lewis Dunk – 6.78
Whilst Van Hecke was superb against Maddison, Dunk struggled a little in an intriguing battle with Richarlison. Still managed to make a couple of trademark blocks and was desperately unlucky when his sliding clearance from a Pape Matar Sarr cross hit the face of the post, rebounding straight back to Senegalese midfield to tap into a now open goal.
Pervis Estupinan – 5.00
Estupinan been very hit-and-miss since his return from injury last month and this was definitely a miss as he received the lowest score in the Spurs 2-1 Brighton ratings. Did not do much going forward and other than a few important tackles, looked a bit lost defensively.
Pascal Gross – 7.22
With Joao Pedro injured, the major question everyone wanted an answer to was which player would take over penalty duties? 16 minutes into the game and we got the answer, Gross sending Vicario the wrong way from 12 yards in Pedro-esque manner. The Albion’s two spells of domination in either half owed much to him in midfield alongside Gilmour.
BILLY GILMOUR – 8.00
Outstanding defensively and going forward. He cut off a number of Tottenham attacks when the hosts were on top and his passing to get the Albion out of tight spots and on the front foot was a joy to watch. Days like these are a reminder of the robbery Brighton committed in signing him for just £9 million from Chelsea.
Facundo Buonanotte – 6.56
Fast feet and delicate one-touch passing between Buonanotte and Welbeck earned the Albion their penalty. Other than that though the teenager did not do much, with his other notable contribution being to shoot a second half effort blocked by Sarr when the far better option was a pass right to the unmarked Lamptey.
Adam Lallana – 6.44
Came into the number 10 role in place of Pedro for his first start since mid-December. Some clever touches and kept the ball moving in typical sophisticated style. Would the poor game management which saw the Albion pushing for a winner with seconds remaining have happened had the experience and leadership of Lallana remained on the pitch?
Kaoru Mitoma – 6.89
A welcome return from Asian Cup duty for the Japanese Bullet Train. Two sublime first touches went viral and he forced Vicario into the best save of the afternoon when the Spurs goalkeeper got just enough to turn and outside of the boot drive away.
Danny Welbeck – 7.00
Dat Guy seems to thrive when playing against opponents whom are rivals with his former clubs. The ex-Arsenal man almost opened the scoring straight from kick off before going onto win Brighton their penalty. Everything went through him in an attacking sense in an impressive showing.
Ansu Fati – 5.78
Tottenham were well on top having just equalised when Fati entered proceedings. Brought more energy to the side and helped turn the tide at a point when Albion fans were thinking “Only one team is going to win this now… it ain’t us”. His low mark in the Spurs 2-1 Brighton ratings presumably comes from a bad miss at 1-1.
Joel Veltman – 5.78
Good to have the dependable Dutchman back after an injury layoff. The only defender who was in their actual position during the Tottenham counter which led to the winning goal.
Evan Ferguson – 5.44
No real impact as his sketchy run of form continues. A reminder that, despite all the hyperbole, he is still only 19-years-old and learning the game. Unless you are a Michael Owen or Wayne Rooney, every teenage striker goes through barren spells.
The WAB Player Ratings are formulated using marks out of 10 given by Brighton fans via Twitter. To have your scores included, follow We Are Brighton on Twitter and look out for the player rating thread after each game.
