Tottenham show a different side to give themselves a big lift ahead of decisive week

Tottenham stopped the rot successful the Premier League with a scrappy 2-0 triumph astatine Brentford.

Vitaly Janelt’s turned Heung-min Son's country into his ain nett to springiness the visitors a 29th-minute pb and substitute Pape Matar Sarr wrapped up an important triumph with a precocious extremity connected the counter-attack.

Here are 3 Spurs talking points from the match…

This was Tottenham’s champion effect successful the league since their 4-0 triumph astatine Manchester City connected November 23, yet halting their alarming descent down the array and giving the full nine a much-needed assistance up of what feels similar a decisive week successful their season.

A archetypal 3 points since the thrashing of hapless Southampton successful mid-December eased the menace of Spurs being sucked into a relegation scrap and volition summation optimism that they tin steadily ascent the array successful the 2nd fractional of the campaign, erstwhile Ange Postecoglou’s enactment situation has passed.

Just arsenic important arsenic the effect was the mode of an disfigured triumph implicit the Bees, sealed by Janelt’s ain extremity from a set-piece and Sarr’s close-range decorativeness connected the break.

Teams successful a rut often request a fortunate interruption and Janelt knew thing astir Son’s corner, which struck him connected the backmost aft a mix-up with goalkeeper Hakon Valdimarsson.

While Brentford edged a cagey archetypal half, the Bees were wholly ascendant aft the interruption but Spurs’ makeshift defence stood up impressively to their barrage.

Postecoglou's broadside scrapped for each ball, tally down the timepiece erstwhile imaginable (with Richarlison taking an property to permission the tract aft being replaced by Dane Scarlett successful the 78th-minute) and enactment their bodies connected the enactment defensively.

With a tense decorativeness looming for Spurs, Sarr wrapped up the triumph soon aft Djed Spence had cleared an effort disconnected his ain line.

The triumph eases the unit connected Postecoglou, who tin present look up with renewed content to Thursday’s Carabao Cup semi-final decider astatine Liverpool and the FA Cup fourth-round necktie astatine Aston Villa adjacent Sunday.

On the time Spurs announced the signing of a caller defender, with Kevin Danso joining from Lens, they produced an outstanding antiaircraft show without a specializer centre-half successful the side.

With Micky van de Ven, Cristian Romero and Radu Dragusin each missing, midfielder Archie Gray and Ben Davies started successful the bosom of defence against a Brentford broadside who characteristically flung shot aft shot into the box.

Davies, who has spent astir of his vocation arsenic a left-back, was outstanding successful the air, repelling respective unsafe crosses, portion 18-year-old Gray again played with a composure beyond his years.

Spurs rode their luck astatine times, notably erstwhile Yoane Wissa’s effort skimmed the apical of the bar, but their makeshift backmost four, which besides included the right-footed Djed Spence astatine left-back, stood up good to Brentford’s attacking threat.

Danso and possibly van de Ven are apt to travel into the broadside for Thursday’s crippled astatine Liverpool but this was an encouraging show from Postecoglou’s understudies, backing up the manager’s repeated claims that his broadside person grown done adversity during their wintertime enactment crisis.

The bulk of Spurs’ injured players volition not beryllium acceptable successful clip to look Liverpool and Villa adjacent week, but for the archetypal clip successful months, Postecoglou should person immoderate enactment decisions looming.

Davies, Gray and Spence each made compelling cases to commencement again astatine Anfield but Danso and apt Van de Ven volition beryllium successful contention, too.

In midfield, Postecoglou besides has an intriguing prime betwixt Yves Bissouma, Rodrigo Bentancur, Sarr, Lucas Bergvall and present possibly Gray for 3 positions, with James Maddison besides pushing to beryllium backmost successful enactment this week.

Spurs inactive look shortest successful onslaught and some Mikey Moore and Richarlison struggled to power the crippled against Brentford, but they stay successful the marketplace for a caller guardant earlier Monday’s transportation deadline, truthful whitethorn person much options by Thursday.

Having hardly had a determination to marque this winter, Postecoglou should find himself with respective successful the weeks up - a bully headache for the caput manager to have.