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HALF-TIME: AZ Alkmaar 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur
And there’s the whistle. First half over. Not a great one from Tottenham Hotspur, who look a little off – not for the first time, sadly, this season.
How will Ange Postecoglou attempt to retrieve this situation? They were unlucky with the own goal but as the stats below show, they’ve not created much, despite the overwhelming majority of possession.
AZ go close again!
Another corner for AZ now… taken short, they go from left to right and then back to the left, and it ends with a mad scramble at Vicario’s near post! Somehow the ball doesn’t go in but about two or three or four different players had a crack there and it was only through a couple of Spurs players putting their bodies on the line that they were able to keep it out.
Half-time is approaching. I anticipate a fair old bake from Ange Postecoglou.
AZ Alkmaar 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur, 44 minutes
Johnson sends it over
A decent spell of prolonged front-half possession for Spurs ends with Brennan Johnson taking a pop with his non-preferred left foot. It sails just over the crossbar – but that was much more like it from Tottenham, albeit a little bit more polish is needed to take advantage of situations like that against a team like AZ, who have a lead to defend and will be happy to sit back and frustrate now.
AZ Alkmaar 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur, 40 minutes
That sums them up right now
Now here’s a free kick for Tottenham after Maddison drew a foul on the edge of their penalty area, just to the left – great territory for a direct shot, and no doubt he and Son Heung-min will be licking their lips at this opportunity.
Maddison has won out over the captain. He will take it… he plays it short to Son, who plays it back, they mess it up, and they just got that horribly wrong. Ends up with the ball in the goalie’s grasp.
That says it all.
AZ Alkmaar 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur, 34 minutes
Phew…
…another near-miss for Spurs. It started with them on the ball and Son taking a shot that was blocked and spun out to the flank. AZ recovered it then drove through the middle of the pitch through the substitute Kasius, who then played in Troy Parrott, who was one-on-one with Vicario… and he, fortunately, saved the day.
The resultant corner ended in nothing, but that was way too easy. Alarm bells ringing for Tottenham right now, they are too passive in all facets of the game right now.
AZ Alkmaar 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur, 32 minutes
Corner for Tottenham
Here’s the first corner of the match for Spurs. Will it be as productive as AZ’s?
James Maddison will take it… he finds Lucas Bergvall who appears to head it straight out, despite arguing he was perhaps fouled in the process. Didn’t look like it to me. What a let-down.
AZ Alkmaar 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur, 29 minutes
Spurs finally get it forward
Best moment of the game so far for Spurs involves Brennan Johnson and a cutback by Djed Spence down the right, which ends up in the safe hands of AZ’s goalkeeper Rome Owusu-Oduro.
They’re looking very blunt in attack so far.
AZ Alkmaar 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur, 24 minutes
DISASTER – Spurs score an own goal!
Oh no.
The first corner kick of the game has ended up in Tottenham’s net, from their own boot!
The set piece was floated into the far post, played forward by Parrott – Lucas Bergvall tried to clear it but instead sliced it high and despite the best efforts of Spence and Vicario, it flew in!
They’re down, and frankly, they deserve to be.
AZ Alkmaar 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur, 18 minutes
Another chance for AZ – and a sub
AZ’s strong opening continues with a shot flashed wide by Ernest Poku, again one that came through the left-hand side.
A short time earlier they were forced into an early substitution with Mayckel Lahdo forced off with an injury from a tackle from Lucas Bergvall, his fellow Swede. He’s been replaced by Denso Kasius.
AZ Alkmaar 0-0 Tottenham Hotspur, 10 minutes
Good start for the hosts
Jeepers. First shot of the game was a close shave for Spurs – AZ’s left-back David Moller Wolfe just sent in a tantalising cross from the left to find Troy Parrott, the former Tottenham striker now plying his trade in the Eredivisie. Parrott made contact, but it wasn’t particularly controlled, and the ball went out for a goal kick, but that was a dangerous incision. And it’s fair to say AZ look the better side from the first couple of minutes.
AZ Alkmaar 0-0 Tottenham Hotspur, 5 minutes
