Tottenham got off to a perfect start to their Premier League season, with Son Heungmin’s second half giving them a 1-0 win over reigning champions Manchester City.
In Nuno Espirito Santos’ first match with Spurs, City started the game bright with Fernandinho and Joao Cancelo both close to opening the scoring.
After that, however, the home team grew into the game and limited their opponents to half chances and took out some of their own opportunities.
10 minutes after the restart, the hosts took the lead with Son tying Nathan Ake in knots before bending an attempt into the top left corner. City tried to gather after this but struggled to carve out many clear openings. In the end, they did not have enough to equalize, which means that Jack Grealish’s Premier League debut ended in defeat.
Here are your player ratings for both teams from North London …
Tanganga committed four fouls in the first foul alone / Michael Regan / Getty Images
Hugo Lloris (GK) – 6/10 – Misjudged a cross terribly early which could easily have resulted in a goal. Nice other than that, make some good saves.
Japhet Tanganga (RB) – 8/10 – Adopted the battle with Grealish and Sterling. Be extremely happy not to be booked before the break. Sometimes his only purpose was to pamper people but that got the job done.
Davinson Sanchez (CB) – 7/10 – Set some heavy challenges on City’s front line. A good answer to Cristian Romero’s arrival.
Eric Dier (CB) – 8/10 – Hard stuff from the very evil Dier. To always have achievements like this is the challenge this season.
Sergio Reguilon (LB) – 7/10 – Read things very well and registered three interceptions. The involvement in the assassination was minimal but he was handsome in possession.
Skipp started after impressing on loan last season / Shaun Botterill / Getty Images
Oliver Skipp (CM) – 7/10 – Always busy from the ball and spotless in possession. It was a tough test today but against weaker sides he can be important in dictating things.
Pierre -Emile Hojbjerg (CM) – 7/10 – Diligent as always. Passing was sometimes loose when City got their pressure right. Positional discipline was excellent.
Dele Alli (AM) – 7/10 – Stuck for his defensive duties diligently and withdrew in midfield three as soon as Spurs lost the ball. Not much to report in possession.
Son scored a nice goal / Shaun Botterill / Getty Images
Steven Bergwijn (RW) – 6/10 – His pace was a threat during the transition but he did not always take advantage of his opportunities. Need to improve their production this season and this was not the best start.
Son Heung -min (ST) – 8/10 – Silenced his teammates’ counterattacks unnecessarily early. Much improved afterwards and scored a nice goal shortly after the break. Could have had another one too.
Lucas Moura (LW) – 7/10 – A busy display. He took a lot of chances and finished the game with three key passes.
Lo Celso came on for Spurs / Chloe Knott – Danehouse / Getty Images
Giovani Lo Celso – 6/10 – Kept the shape after getting on.
Matt Doherty – 6/10 – Did everything required of him.
Cristian Romero – N / A
Mendy was poor / Michael Regan / Getty Images
Ederson (GK) – 5/10 – Almost punished for not managing a corner in the first half. Dias sewed him for the goal but he might have done better.
Joao Cancelo (RB) – 7/10 – Be very close to scoring in the first half. Defended well, barely gave Bergwijn a nose.
Ruben Dias (CB) – 5/10 – Got himself in a real mess for the goal, hides the sight of his goalkeeper and fails to make a routine block.
Nathan Ake (CB) – 5/10 – Dominated in the air but revealed for Son’s strike. He will probably come straight from the team when John Stones returns.
Benjamin Mendy (LB) – 4/10 – Made several sloppy defensive mistakes and his passing was poor. He is the weak link on this city page and teams will be able to use him this season.
Grealish made his city debut / Marc Atkins / Getty Images
Jack Grealish (CM) – 5/10 – Well shackled in the first half after an early flash of magic. Struggled to get into the game after the reboot as well. However, he made many fouls.
Fernandinho (CM) – 7/10 – A well-rounded display. He kept the ball moving and also broke the lines with a string of probing through balls.
Ilkay Gundogan (CM) – 6/10 – Made an important block from a Lucas Moura effort in the first half. Brought the ball nicely in midfield but passing was often not direct enough.
Mahrez was poor / Marc Atkins / Getty Images
Riyad Mahrez (RW) – 5/10 – Did not offer enough. Braked things too much and the delivery was scratched.
Ferran Torres (ST) – 6/10 – Played the fake nine role effectively. Made several intelligent runs from the depths and led the press. Maybe had done better with a chance after the break.
Raheem Sterling (LW) – 5/10 – Linked well to Grealish in the early exchanges. After that, they seemed to get in each other’s way. Their understanding comes with time.
Jesus will hope for more minutes this season / Marc Atkins / Getty Images
Gabriel Jesus – 6/10 – Played an excellent consistent ball to Grealish. Always involved.
Kevin De Bruyne – 6/10 – Increased City’s pace and they immediately looked more dangerous. Needed more time to get a talking effect.
Oleksandr Zinchenko – 6/10 – Fixed.
