Eriksen The Hero! Player Ratings- Hull 1-2 Spurs

Embed from Getty Images

Christian Eriksen grabbed the 90th-minute winner for Spurs as they came from behind to beat 10-man Hull.

Former Spur Jake Livermore had given the hosts the lead with just 8 minutes gone when he slotted a loose ball home from 25-yards.

Spurs probed in vain for an equaliser before half time but the game was turned on it’s head minutes after the second 45 began when Gaston Ramirez saw red for lashing out at Jan Vertonghen. Pressure mounted and was eventually rewarded when Eriksen’s swerving free-kick came back off the post for Harry Kane to finish into the empty net.

The kitchen sink came out as Hull held on until the very last minute of regular time when Eriksen picked the ball up 20 yards out to fire across goal and hand Spurs a top-half place.

Player Ratings

Hugo Lloris 6 – Topsy-turvy from the Frenchman who spilled a few long balls but ultimately cancelled out his errors with some sublime goalkeeping to keep out Brady and Ben Arfa.

Eric Dier 5 – Another lacklustre showing from the centre-half who was substituted at half time. Good in terms of strength and footwork but he’s far from the type of fullback Poch’s system requires, and was given a difficult task up against Robbie Brady.

Jan Vertonghen 7 – for all his grumpiness, Vertonghen is certainly our most gifted defender. Cut out some vital balls and was excellent on the front foot when Hull’s attack eased off. He even smiled when we scored!

Federico Fazio 6 – Was given a hard time on Twitter due to his first half mistake, handing the ball to Jake Livermore who finished with aplomb. He was also in direct comparison with the man he replaced, Michael Dawson, but his second half display restored a lot of faith for me. Better with his feet than most think.

Ben Davies 6 – Fairly average shift from Davies who didn’t exactly push the boat out like Danny Rose would. No doubt more solid defensively but hardly a risk taker, with few of is deliveries finding targets. Certainly more to come.

Ryan Mason 7 – Had a rough game thanks to Huddlestone and Livermore’s heavy-handed approach, but Mason performed admirably on the big stage again. An excellent anchor and faultless in the way of work-rate.

Mousa Dembele 5 – Struggling to see Dembele’s place in this Spurs side. Clearly not a defensive midfielder, although that was glossed over due to Hull’s defensive attitude after the red card. Guilty of holding onto the ball too long, too.

Erik Lamela 6 – For some reason Lamela’s come under some intense criticism since full-time. I was impressed by the Argentine today although he is no doubt guilty of holding onto the ball too long. Every team needs a “selfish” player as long as they have that ability and it was good to see Lamela going alone every now and then.

Christian Eriksen 8 – Praise the Lord he’s back! After weeks in the shadows Eriksen finally asserted himself as the side’s maestro, with every second touch of the ball coming from the Dane’s boot. Topped off the display with a lovely goal after his unlucky free-kick had resulted in the first. Showed that he needs to be playing in the middle!

Harry Kane 6 – A relatively quiet one from Kane despite the attacking onslaught. Grabbed himself yet another goal, albeit a tap in, but needed to be playing as the number 9 rather than out wide.

Roberto Sodado 6 – Some really positive signs from the Spaniard who yet again deserves praise for his positive build up play. Certainly should have found the net today but is due credit for finding himself in the right positions.

SUBS

Vlad Chiriches 6 – a surprisingly good outlet when he came on at right-back. Much less risky playing him there rather than centre-back that’s for sure. Delivery understandably average.

Aaron Lennon 7 – Changed the game. He balanced the side superbly by finally adding some width to the side, pulling the 10-men of Hull all over the park.

Paulinho N/a – Why did Paulinho come on?

This one was too close for comfort. For the side that we supposedly are aiming to be, needing the assistance of dubious red cards away at Villa and now Hull is simply not good enough.

There is no better feeling than seeing your side put away a Kane/Eriksen-esque last minute winner, but for the sake of my heart rate I’d love to see us beat a mid-table team comfortably for once.

Talking points aplenty, selection headaches and the seeds sown for no doubt countless debates, it’s good to have Tottenham back again.