9 March 2025
Tottenham 2 Bournemouth 2
Tottenham welcomed Bournemouth to North London in a match that seemed a must-win for both teams, for very different reasons. One side was chasing a top four spot, while the other was looking to close the gap on the sides in mid-table. In seasons gone by, it would be Spurs pushing for Champions League football but roles are now reversed as The Cherries looked to secure European football.
In classic Spurs’ style, Romero almost gifted the visitors a goal with just twenty seconds gone. His stray pass went straight to Evanilson, who only had the keeper to beat. The Brazilian looked to find the bottom corner but Vicario reacted brilliantly to turn his effort around the post. He had saved his teammate with that one and kept his side on level terms.
Postecoglou must still be trying to understand how this team of his has the ability to self-destruct at the drop of a hat. Try as he might to get these mistakes out of them, many have tried and failed over the years. Nobody with all their mental faculties is putting Tottenham defenders in their fantasy league teams and hoping for positive outcomes points-wise.
They gave the ball away deep in their own half and Kluivert ran through on goal. The Dutchman will be disappointed with his finish, allowing Vicario to block with his legs. As they recycled it, Tavernier got a header off at goal but the keeper was equal to it once again. It had been a busy start to the game for the Spurs stopper, they could easily have been two-nil down.
Porro’s poor pass in the Bournemouth half allowed Kerkez acres of space to run into. He whipped in an inch-perfect cross to pick out Tavernier who drilled home to give The Cherries a well-deserved lead. The only surprise was that it took Iraola’s side until just before the break to open their account in the capital. They had wasted plenty of good chances.
On paper, these Tottenham players are mainly intentional footballers. However, they make so many mistakes that at this level you are going to be punished more often than not. The better sides in the Premier League are going to put you to the sword playing this way, something we have seen repeat itself a lot this season for Postecoglou’s team.
After the interval, an attack for the hosts broke down. Tavernier linked up with Semenyo, before slotting Evanilson through in behind the Spurs’ defence. He ran towards goal before playing a sublime cross on the outside of his boot to Kluivert at the back post. The in-form Dutchman slotted home to double the lead for The Cherries.
Sadly for the visitors, the goal was not going to stand. As the replay showed, Semenyo came back from an offside position before playing the ball. It was fantastic football from Bournemouth as they transitioned from defence into attack in the blink of an eye. Tottenham had got lucky that the decision had gone their way in this instance.
Son got involved in play for one of the first times in the game. He dropped his shoulder and cut inside onto his right foot, before looking to bend a shot into the far corner. It got the slightest of deflections off the bottom of the Bournemouth defender’s studs to clip the outside of the post and go wide. That was the closest Tottenham had come to an equaliser.
The Cherries almost doubled their lead as Semenyo played it into the path of Kerkez. While everyone thought he was going to cross the ball, he drilled it at goal, almost catching out Vicario at his near post. Fortunately for Spurs, is crashed against the outside of the woodwork. Iraola’s side looked to have too much attacking threat to not score again in this game.
Despite the constant warnings, Bournemouth finally doubled their lead. Kluivert did well in the build-up before sliding it into the path of Evanilson. As the keeper came out, he dinked it past him into the far corner. It was no more than The Cherries have deserved. With twenty-five minutes remaining, it was hard to see a way back into the game for Postecoglou’s side.
Bergvall then tried his luck from distance and had Kepa beaten, only to see his shot come crashing back off the post. At this point the Spurs’ fans must have felt that this was just not going to be their day. They needed to find a reply immediately if they were to stand any chance of getting something from this game. Time was running out.
As the hosts came forward again, Sarr had the ball in a wide position. He looked up and with no one in an advanced position, struck a thunderous effort past Kepa and into the far corner of the goal. It was some strike as the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium erupted into a cauldron of noise. There was still plenty of time for Spurs to get something from this game.
Iraola’s side almost added a third as they played through the hosts. Kluivert shot from wide in the box, only to see his effort came back off the post. Spurs immediately pushed forward, finding Son once again. As he looked to take it around Kepa, the keeper brought him down and the referee wasted no time in pointing to the penalty spot.
Son stepped up and dinked his penalty down the middle of the goal with Kepa having gone big into the corner. It was a calm finish by the Tottenham skipper and was enough to ensure that his side got a point from this game. Iraola will not be pleased that his team threw away a two-goal lead to allow Postecoglou’s to get anything from the match.
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