Tottenham failed to hold on for three points against Wolverhampton Wanderers as a late Jorgen Strand Larsen strike claimed a draw.
Set pieces were again part of the game, with a well-worked free kick from Wolves giving them the lead before Rodrigo Bentancur equalised with a header from a Pedro Porro corner. Heung-min Son then missed a penalty before Brennan Johnson scored Spurs’s second just before half-time. Wolves pushed hard towards the end and were rewarded by Larsen’s strike.
As well as missing out on the three points, there will be further concern for Ange Postecoglou as left-back Destiny Udogie went off after 50 minutes with Spurs’ defensive injury issues seemingly getting worse.
Jay Harris breaks down the action from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
What does Bentancur bring?
This was only Bentancur’s second appearance in the Premier League after serving a seven-match ban in domestic competitions for racist comments he made about his team-mate Heung-min Son in the summer.
Bentancur usually rotates ownership of the holding midfield role with Yves Bissouma but they both started against Wolves and it offered Spurs a more solid base in midfield and they would take it in turns to push further forward.
It also allowed Dejan Kulusevski, who has been Tottenham’s best player this season, to focus on staying high up the pitch. Bentancur’s physicality was on display throughout and it is a quality Spurs have missed. Tottenham’s record from defending set pieces is not great, as shown by Hwang Hee-chan’s goal, but the Uruguay international made a couple of crucial defensive headers. He snapped into challenges and intercepted Jean-Ricner Bellegarde’s cross after Destiny Udogie lost the ball in a dangerous area.
Bentancur is only 27 but was Tottenham’s second oldest outfield player in the starting XI behind 32-year-old Son. The midfielder’s experience was crucial and he could be heard barking out instructions to his team-mates.
It was an impressive all-round performance from Bentancur which included his header which drew Spurs level after a shaky start. Sadly for Spurs, having been booked for a poor challenge late on, he will now miss the next game against Newcastle after picking up five yellows this season.
Bentancur equalised for Spurs (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Are Son’s struggles a concern?
It is a difficult and sensitive subject for Tottenham supporters to talk about but it is time to accept that Son has underperformed all season. In the early stages of the campaign, Son’s struggles could be attributed to a persistent hamstring injury which forced him to miss three league games. Tottenham’s captain scored recently in the 5-0 thrashing of Southampton and chaotic defeat to Chelsea but he looks well below his best.
In his prime, the South Korea international would weave past defenders out wide. At the moment, he looks short on confidence and is guilty of slowing Spurs down at times. There was an example of this in the first half against Wolves when he mis-hit a simple pass towards Udogie which killed the momentum of a counter-attack.
When Johnson earned a penalty before half-time, it seemed like a good opportunity for Son to restore his confidence. He took ages to strike the ball and his tame effort was saved by Jose Sa. Son slowly trudged back into position and at one point put his hand on his hips in disbelief. The fact he was substituted for Timo Werner in the second half when the game was still in the balance tells you everything you need to know about his effectiveness. It looked like Son’s miss wouldn’t matter but Strand Larsen’s 86th-minute equaliser meant it proved costly.
Maybe there is an argument to be made that he is not a perfect fit for Postecoglou’s system. Son forged a devastating partnership with Harry Kane and thrived off running into space behind defenders. In this version of Spurs, he is expected to dribble past multiple players to find himself in promising positions. The best players find ways to adapt though and right now Son is struggling to make an impact.
Son’s penalty was saved by Sa (GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)
What does Udogie injury mean for Reguilon?
Tottenham’s injury curse struck again on Sunday afternoon and Udogie is the latest victim. Udogie came off in the first half of Tottenham’s 5-0 victory over Southampton on December 15 with muscle tightness, missed their next game against Manchester United a few days later and was an unused substitute in the 6-3 defeat to Liverpool before returning against Nottingham Forest.
Maybe it should not have come as a surprise then that at the beginning of the second half, he dropped to the floor and clutched his right hamstring after attempting to overlap Son. The Italy international looked in discomfort and, with Djed Spence suspended after being sent off in the 1-0 defeat to Forest, he had to be replaced by Sergio Reguilon.
Reguilon came off the bench in the Carabao Cup quarter-final victory over Manchester United but this was his first league appearance for Spurs since April 2022. The 28-year-old’s contract expires in the summer and from next week he can sign a pre-contract agreement with foreign clubs. It might be wise for Spurs to hold onto him with all of these injuries piling up.
The left-back understandably looked rusty when he came on. He misplaced a couple of passes and wildly lunged into a tackle on Goncalo Guedes — he was fortunate that Guedes skipped over his legs. Postecoglou likes his full-backs to invert but Reguillon’s skill set does not suit those tactics. He excels at running down the wing and whipping crosses into the box. There were a couple of occasions he looked tempted to do this but there were not enough bodies to aim for.
If Udogie’s injury is serious then Spence is primed to replace him but do not rule out Reguilon making more appearances in the near future.
Udogie went off after 50 minutes (Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
What next for Spurs?
Saturday, January 4: Newcastle (H), Premier League, 12.30pm UK, 7.30am ET
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(Top photo: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
