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Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola renewed their rivalry on Saturday in the 2020-21 Premier League when Spurs hosted Manchester City at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
It promised to be a thrilling encounter, and it surely turned out that way. The first half was entirely dominated by Manchester City, but they had no goals to show for their efforts. However, the home team cut open Manchester City with their first real attack of the game: Tanguy Ndombele clipped a simple ball over the top, and Son Heung-Min was quick enough to control and roll it under Ederson.
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The second half followed much the same script as the first. The away side did all the attacking, but it was Tottenham Hotspur who scored the game's second goal. Harry Kane drove through the middle and passed the ball to substitute Giovani Lo Celso, who made no mistake in doubling his side's lead.
Pep Guardiola and his Manchester City side attacked relentlessly but couldn't get past a well-drilled Tottenham Hotspurs defence.
An early goal in the first-half by Son lit the night before Lo Celso's second-half strike sealed the win for the home side, who went top of the Premier League table. Manchester City created many chances but were unable to rattle Hugo Lloris' net. On that note, let us take a look at the five hits and flops from the game.
#5 HIT: Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham Hotspur)
When you come up against a team like Manchester City, you need to bring your A-game defensively, and Toby Alderwiereld made sure that Tottenham Hotspur had no problems at the back.
Alderwiereld had an answer to everything that was thrown at him by Manchester City during the game. The Belgian was there to block almost every shot and made seven clearances and two tackles.
It was a very solid performance by Alderwiereld before the 31-year defender was subbed off early after going down while holding his groin.
#4 FLOP: Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
It wasn't as happy an outing for Kevin De Bruyne as it was for his fellow countryman Alderwiereld.
It might seem harsh to label Kevin De Bruyne as a flop in the game, but that is only because much more is expected from the Manchester City captain than what he produced against Tottenham Hotspur. De Bruyne did all he could to get his team back in the game, but the Manchester City frontline just didn't click.
In the end, it looked like De Bruyne was sending in crosses and taking shots against Tottenham Hotspur just for the sake of it.
He is the chief creator for Manchester City and did his best to make something happen, but in the end, it was a night to forget for his team. City's lack of reliability in the attack has been a major talking point this season, and De Bruyne did point that out in the post-match conference.
#3 HIT: Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (Tottenham Hotspur)
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has been Tottenham Hotspur's signing of the season without a doubt.
The £15-million midfielder has hardly put a foot wrong since he joined the London side, and he provided another example of that against Manchester City.
He was given the task to mark Kevin de Bruyne and not give him much space, something he did with near perfection. The 25-year old rallied his troops in midfield and made sure that every second ball was won in that area.
Simply put, it was a night to remember for Hojbjerg.
#2 FLOP: Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City)
Gabriel Jesus will be hoping to forget everything about this game as soon as possible.
Inconsistency has been a hallmark of his game as the Manchester City player had an off-day against Tottenham Hotspur. Credit to the Brazilian, as he worked hard to provide something, but he could not find the back of the net for his team. He took too long at times to take his shot and release the ball.
The striker was also involved in a controversial moment when VAR spotted Jesus using his arm before assisting Laporte, and the Manchester City goal was disallowed.
#1 HIT: Son Heung-Min (Tottenham Hotspur)
It looks like Son Heung-Min just won't stop scoring. After another mind-blowing performance, the Tottenham Hotspur superstar is now leading the race for the Golden Boot.
The game was barely five minutes old when Son anticipated Ndombele's perfect ball over the top and finished it with ease. Son was relentless throughout the game and was running up and down the field.
With nine goals and two assists in the 2020-21 Premier League, Son has had an amazing start to the season and is showing no signs of slowing down any time soon. The South Korean is in the form of his life, and Jose Mourinho can bank on him to give such performances week in and week out.
