Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 Brentford: Spurs beat Bees in comprehensive victory

The game started poorly for Tottenham Hotspur after Spurs lost possession in their own half and Bryan Mbuemo fired an incredible volley past Vicario just 23 seconds into the game. But to Spurs' credit, from that point on, Tottenham Hotspur were the only ones who had the upper hand. Spurs immediately stepped up a gear and forced Brentford into numerous turnovers. Spurs scored goals in the first half through Dominic Solanke and Brennan Johnson and added a late goal through James Maddison to secure a comfortable 3-1 victory over the Bees at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Mbuemo's goal could have been disappointing but Spurs showed more courage than anyone would have expected after a tepid midweek League Cup performance. Spurs equalised in the 8th minute after Spurs' pressure forced a loss of possession from James Maddison and fired a shot which Brentford goalkeeper Flekken parried. Solanke was right at the back post and slotted home the rebound, his first for the club.

Tottenham continued the frantic pressure, forcing Brentford to give up possession numerous times and remaining defensively throughout the half. Brennan Johnson put Spurs ahead on the half-hour mark thanks to another move initiated by Maddison. Son played Johnson free, who dribbled Nathan Collins and fired a low ball past Flekken into the bottom left corner of the goal, giving Spurs a 2-1 lead.

Brentford had a couple more late chances but none were worse than when Guglielmo Vicario had possession and lost the ball just in front of his own goal, but he was able to recover and save the chance. Spurs went into the break with a 2-1 lead and the wind at their backs.

Big Ange opted not to make any changes at half-time, which makes sense given how well the team performed in the first 45 minutes. The press was back in overdrive, at least for the first part of the game – Dejan Kulusevski was played into the box after another Brentford loss of possession, but despite some nice one-twos in the box, Deki's shot was saved by Flekken.

Spurs eased off the pressing midway through the half, probably due to exhaustion, and allowed Brentford to take control of the game. The visitors ended up having a couple of good chances on goal that forced Vicario into some excellent saves, including a wild one-handed diving save from a free kick by Brentford's Kevin Schade.

There was a nervous atmosphere midway through the second half, but Spurs broke it when James Maddison chipped Flekken for Tottenham's third goal in the 85th minute. It was an exceptional team attack, initiated by Yves Bissouma and supported by Son Heung-Min, who provided two assists on the day.

The end result was a solid win for Spurs, one they desperately needed after a series of early results took some of the resolve out of fans earlier this season. The win catapults Spurs into tenth place with seven points from their opening five games.

Game reactions

• Final stats: xG 3.51 – 0.58, 23 shots, 10 on target for Spurs. That's a beating.
• I couldn't do much other than laugh at Brentford's opener. It came from a silly loss of possession but Mbeumo's finish was absolutely top class. You never want to let a pass into that space but that was just an absurd finish that was a whole foot behind him, what can you do?
• Tottenham's pressing was EXCELLENT today. Spurs had 23 touches in the Brentford box in the first half hour! Maddison and Solanke in particular were absolute pressing monsters – both of Tottenham's first half goals were initiated by Maddison pressing from a deeper midfield position and taking balls to launch a quick attack, and Madders created a number of other chances that were not converted. Solanke's drive is simply absurd and his non-shooting actions are top notch, although he did miss a couple of golden opportunities for tap-ins.
• Super happy with Johnson's goal. Not only was it a clever finish as he recognised Flekken was out of position, but he also dribbled past his opponent in the box to create space, something he rarely does, and then silenced his critics after scoring. Great goal. So happy for him. Six shots on goal in the game, good too.
• The variance in Vicario's play in this match was WILD. He nearly lost a ball in goal after being caught and dispossessed in possession, and then he later touched the ball with his hand outside his box… I can't believe he didn't get a card for that, it was a blatant error of judgement by the referee. But then he also had some absolutely insane saves to keep Brentford out. Truly a strange performance to assess.
• Kulusevski had another really good game in the opposition box. He's so good at getting through there and oddly so reluctant to shoot in those positions. If he could figure out how to finish he'd be one of the best number 10s in the league.
• Son looked better in this game, but it still seems like he is a little more hesitant to shoot or overthinks his moves in transition, or something. I don't really understand it. But he did create seven chances and two assists in that game, so you know. Not that important right now, shut up, Dustin!
• Spurs had a number of high-quality chances in the box that they just couldn't put in the net. As good as they were, it felt a bit like a continuation of the problems they've had going forward in their first four games. Or maybe this is just the Ange-Ball Experience™ and I'm being overly critical?
• Spurs’ third goal was sublimateWhat a tackle from Bissouma, what a run and pass from Son (from the right side too!), what a finish from Maddison, who had the foresight to lob the ball over Flekken in transition. Simply wonderful. Excellent all round, no comments.
• Loved the boy band triple sub from Postecoglou, featuring Lucas Bergvall, Archie Gray and Mikey Moore for a few late minutes.
• There were nervous moments, but today was a spirit-lifting, all-round victory for Spurs. Is this the game that makes Ange-Ball click?
• We are so back.