Tottenham's winless run in the Premier League now stands at three matches after Leicester's star duo led the Foxes to three points at home. Tottenham's winless run in the Premier League now stands at three matches after Leicester's star duo led the Foxes to victory. Following a disappointing loss to Leicester, the FC crew dissect what has gone wrong for Spurs in the Premier League so far. Mauricio Pochettino says Tottenham's slow start in defeat at Leicester has become a recurring theme for his side. Dele Alli says Spurs' loss at Leicester is difficult to take, and they need to focus on results rather than the title race.
Spurs slumped to their third away defeat in a row as Leicester took all three points at the King Power Stadium. As so often in recent weeks, Tottenham started slowly and the home side were quick to capitalise with Jamie Vardy opening the scoring in the 13th minute with a neat volley. Leicester doubled their lead shortly before the break when the Spurs defence was again caught napping on a goal from Riyad Mahrez and though Harry Kane pulled a late goal back it was too little too late. Leicester City Tottenham Hotspur 2 1 FT Game Details Live football odds with bet365. Bet Now » Highlights GameCast Lineups and Stats
Positives
Almost too few to mention. Spurs did improve in the second half but their performance still fell well short of that expected from such a talented team. The most encouraging sign was the return of Erik Lamela who came on as substitute for his first game in over a year with just over 10 minutes left on the clock.
Negatives
Yet another lethargic display. The passing and build-up play was just too slow to trouble a well organised defence. Nor was there any player with the presence or self-belief to impose themselves on the game. Both Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen were both poor. It may be too early to talk of a crisis but Spurs are not just losing touch of any realistic chance of challenging for the title, they are also losing touch with a top-four place.
Manager rating out of 10
4 -- Before the game, Mauricio Pochettino had talked of how much his team preferred playing away from Wembley. For the third time in a row, Pochettino's players proved they are capable of performing just as poorly away from home as they have done at Wembley. The team is craving some stability and consistency, yet Pochettino insists on tinkering with his lineup for every game. While swapping the wing-backs for the midweek game was just about excusable, playing Moussa Sissoko ahead of Son Heung-min made no sense at all. Pochettino also needs to have a long, hard look at why key players such as Alli and Eriksen are underperforming against the likes of Leicester and West Brom, but turning on the style in the glamour ties against Real Madrid. It looks to the fans as if both players have one eye on leaving the club. Perhaps a spell on the bench might concentrate their minds.
Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best. Players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)
GK Hugo Lloris, 6 -- Couldn't really be faulted for either of Leicester's goals, but Lloris failed to properly marshal and organise his defence. All too often, especially in the first half, the defence looked like it was an accident waiting to happen and that the score was just 2-0 at half-time owed as much to Leicester's profligacy as Lloris's efforts.
DF Serge Aurier, 6 -- Looked reasonably effective when going forward, but his defensive skills leave a great deal to be desired. Consistently caught out of possession and was lucky to escape a yellow -- or possibly a red -- for a horrible first-half tackle.
DF Davinson Sanchez, 6 -- The defence just hasn't looked the same since Toby Alderweireld got injured. Sanchez does his best filling in on the right of the back three, but doesn't look wholly comfortable.
DF Eric Dier, 6 -- An off day at the heart of the defence with little communication apparent between him, Sanchez and Jan Vertonghen. Was moved forward in the second half as Pochettino switched to a back four but made little impact.
DF Jan Vertonghen, 6 -- Could arguably have done more to close down Riyad Mahrez in the build-up to Leicester's second goal. Another player who appears lost without Alderweireld.
DF Danny Rose, 7 -- One of the few bright spots for Spurs. Now that he appears fully fit, Rose is back to full pace and opposition defences struggle to cope with his delivery. Secure in defence and should replace Ben Davies as first-choice left-back.
MF Mousa Dembele, 6 -- A player of Dembele's ability should be dominating the midfield, but all too often he seemed to go missing in action. What happened to the footballer who other teams found so hard to dispossess and used to maraud the length of the pitch?
Tottenham' drop in form continued, as Spurs have now managed only one win in their last five league games.
MF Moussa Sissoko, 5 -- Pochettino appears to be able to see something in Sissoko that the rest of us miss. Yet another peripheral performance from a peripheral player. Had the chance to level the scores in the first half when put through by Kane but his shot lacked conviction and was comfortably saved.
MF Christian Eriksen, 5 -- Guilty of one of the worst misses of the season when he volleyed the ball both high and wide from just six yards. A miss that summed up much of his play throughout the game. He appears to be coasting, comfortable in the knowledge that Pochettino lacks the depth of squad to drop him.
MF Dele Alli, 5 -- Another innocuous performance. Alli appears lost and too many of his flicks and touches are failing to come off. Only he and Pochettino will know whether he is just going through a bad patch -- he is still only 21 -- or if his mind isn't fully on his game.
FW Harry Kane, 7 -- An uncharacteristic first half in which the Spurs malaise had affected the star striker as he frequently either took an extra touch or delayed a shot when given the chance to shoot. Looked much sharper in the second half and was rewarded with a consolation goal.
Substitutes
MF Son Heung-min, 7 -- Will be wondering why Sissoko was preferred to him in the starting XI. Still far too wasteful on the ball, but Spurs currently look better with him than without him.
FW Fernando Llorente, 5 -- Had a late chance to level the scores but his lack of confidence was apparent as he fluffed his lines. Has yet to get on the scoresheet in a Spurs shirt and Pochettino must surely be considering a replacement for him in the transfer window.
John Crace is one of ESPN FC's Tottenham bloggers. Follow him on Twitter @JohnJCrace.
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Source: espn.co.uk