Tottenham Hotspur will have to wait 22 days to get a first win after they were unable to beat Aston Villa 3-2 at the Tottenham Stadium on Saturday, extending their woeful start to the season under Roberto De Zerbi.
While they ended their bad run of going eight hours without scoring a goal, they will head into the international break in the relegation zone, and will be wondering when their first ever win of the season will come.
With 65% possession, and more shots at goal, Spurs really ought to have taken a lead. They thought they’d squared things to make it 1-1 when Kudus swept home from close range, but Robertson, who had a decent game despite making a horrible mistake for the Villa opener, was just a shoulder length off-side.
Nicolas Jackson and Emi Buendia made it 3-0 for Villa, but Tottenham reduced the deficit through Conor Gallagher and Jan Paul van Hecke, goals that were not enough to salvage anything for them, which now means they have to wait 22 days to get a first win of the season when they face Man United at Old Trafford.
Striver.Football rated all the players that graced the pitch on Saturday.
Tottenham
GK- Antonin Kinsky- 2
Endured a torrid second half, and should have done better for the Nicolas Jackson goal as the ball slipped through his fingers. Tottenham need a serious upgrade in goal in a future transfer window.
RB - Pedro Porro - N/A
Had to limp off in the 22nd minute through injury, so did not have enough time to influence the outcome of the game.
LB - Jan Paul van Hecke - 5
Looked leggy up against Nicolas Jackon, and lost most of the duels he contested, but did score a stoppage time goal following a lapse in concentration by Aston Villa.
CB- Micky van de Ven -1
Like van Hecke, van de Ven struggled to inspire the backline, and looks a shadow of the player that first came to Tottenham in the 2022/2023 season. He was not on the pitch when Tottenham conceded the first goal as he was undergoing treatment for a face injury.
CB- Andrew Robertson -6
Tried stretching the Aston Villa backline with testing overlapping runs, and his cross for Mohamed Kudus’ disallowed goal was promising from a Tottenham perspective. Assisted van Hecke for the second goal.
CM - Rodrigo Bentancur -3
Didn’t get his team going in midfield, and struggled to get the better of Emi Buendia.
CM- Sandro Tonali - 5
Looked much better in the second half, and even produced a good through ball to Andy Robertson for Tottenham’s disallowed goal, but was otherwise the best of a bad batch of players.
LW- Savio- 4
Tried to create from nothing especially in the second half, but really couldn’t get the team going as well.
AM - Mateus Fernandes -2
Looked ineffective before being hooked off for Mohamed Kudus at halftime.
LW - Omar Marmoush- 4
Like Savio, he did try to create from nothing but in the end, produced nothing.
CF - Dominic Solanke -2
Never threatened Zion Suzuki at all before being hooked off for James Maddison.
Tottenham Substitutes
Archie Gray-3
Came on as a substitute for the injured Pedro Porro but struggled to have a meaningful impact n the game.
Mohamed Kudus- 6
Tried to make things happen, and even had a goal disallowed, and it was his work down the right half space and general right flank that eventually helped pull a goal back for Tottenham,
James Maddison -2
Had no impact in the game whatsoever, and should have done better closing down Emi Buendia for Villa’s third goal.
Lucas Bergvall - 4
Struggled to have any impact in the game other than keep possession ticking when he came on as a substitute.
Conor Gallagher -6
Came on as a substitute and scored a goal to help reduce the deficit for Tottenham.
Aston Villa
Zion Suzuki-6
Did well for most part, but will be disappointed to have conceded two goals late in the game.
Aaron Wan Bissaka -5
Starting the game ahead of Matty Cash, Bissaka did okay before being hooked of for the Polish international at half time.
Victor Lindelof -6
Did not have much defending to do, but will be disappointed his side conceded two goals late in the game.
Tyrone Mings -6
Did not have much defending to do, but will be disappointed his side conceded two goals late in the game.
Matteo Ruggeri -6
Did well trying to keep Savio and Marmoush quiet when they rotated on that right flank.
Boubacar Kamara - 7
Kept things ticking alongside Joao Gomes at the base of midfield and produced an assist.
Joao Gomes -7
Made some passes that threatened the Tottenham defence from deep and had a generally good afternoon.
John McGinn -8
Assisted Emi Buendia for Villa’s third goal and looked threatening down that right flank.
Emiliano Buendía -8
Scored a sensational screamer in the second half to put them 3-0 up at some point.
Johan Manzambi -8
A goal on his first full start for Villa to keep his good run from the 2026 World Cup going following his recovery from injury.
Nicolas Jackson -8
Stretched Tottenham all afternoon and was rewarded with a goal to help Villa get all the three points.
Aston Villa Substitutes
Matty Cash -6
Kept Savio quiet but gave away a freekick toward the end of the match that helped Tottenham pull one goal back
George Hemmings -5
Came on as a substitute for Johan Manzambi but did not do anything extraordinary.
Ibrahim Mbaye - N/A
Did not have enough time to influence the outcome of the game.
Ross Barkley -N/A
Did not have enough time to influence the outcome of the game.
Final Thoughts
Spurs showed some fight but there’s no doubt the right team won today. Spurs were the better team in the first half but didn’t take their chances. Villa did and ran away to a 3-0 lead before two late consolation goals from the home team.
