Tottenham and Liverpool both came into Saturday evening’s game unbeaten in the Premier League and with the knowledge that reigning champions Manchester City had lost at Wolves earlier in the afternoon.
It meant a win for Jurgen Klopp’s team would take them top of the table while a victory for Spurs would put them second.
What transpired at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium was a dramatic encounter between two of the most impressive sides so far this season. Spurs took the lead — after Liverpool went down to 10 men – before Liverpool equalised just before half time through Cody Gakpo.
The second half looked like it was going to be a heroic display from Klopp’s team after they were reduced to nine men, but just as in their last home game against Sheffield United, Tottenham won the match deep into stoppage time, this time via the cruelty of a Joel Matip own goal.
Here, our writers break down the key moments of the match…
Liverpool go down to 10 early on… again
As soon as Simon Hooper walked over to the VAR monitor, there was only one way it was going.
After initially showing Curtis Jones a yellow card for his challenge on Yves Bissouma, the referee reversed his decision and upgraded it to a red.
Jones had tried to win the ball as he went for a 50-50 with Bissouma. His foot touched the top of the ball but it also went over the top and caught the Tottenham midfielder on the shin. There was no malice, but the slow-motion replays probably made it look worse than it was.
(Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
It left Liverpool with over an hour to play with 10 men — and in a very similar scenario to the Newcastle game, when Virgil van Dijk was sent off after 28 minutes. It was Liverpool’s third red card in seven games; already a record for a season in the Klopp era.
The VAR agony did not end with Jones’ red card either. After 34 minutes, Luis Diaz was played through to score what would have been the opening goal of the game, only to see it disallowed — fairly rapidly — by the VAR officials. A sense of injustice was growing among Liverpool fans. It would continue to grow throughout the game.
Andy Jones
Spurs open the scoring with a moment of incision
Tottenham’s opener came shortly after Jones’ red card, but it didn’t feel as if it came about as a direct result of it — Liverpool looked just as threatening with 10 men as the half drew to a close — but the departure did give Spurs a bit of added momentum and oomph about their play. You could see the midfield move up 10 yards and start playing more on the front foot as if they knew this was their moment to take the game to Liverpool.
James Maddison, the man who coming into the weekend had played more open play passes into the penalty area than any Premier League player (25), did it again with an incisive slice that dissected Liverpool’s midfield and discombobulated Joe Gomez, who couldn’t get anywhere near the ball or Richarlison, who delivered his pass to Son Heung-min with the outside of his right foot. The South Korean did the rest with a first-time finish.
Three touches, three seconds. Liverpool helpless and Spurs in the lead. It was Son’s sixth goal of the season already (he scored 10 last season). Some improvement.
Tim Spiers
Postecoglou tries something new up front
In Richarlison, Spurs lined up with a player wearing number nine at left wing, and in Son, they had their striker wearing number seven.
Ange Postecoglou has been trying different solutions in his front four to accommodate the loss of Harry Kane to Bayern Munich, and this is the first time he has utilised a front four with this complexion: Maddison at No 10 and Dejan Kulusevski off the right.
Son was Spurs’ least involved player in the opening 30 minutes, consistently positioned offside and standing behind the centre-backs to keep the back four pinned, making space for Maddison and the central midfielders to combine. This was particularly important against such a high Liverpool back four, who were man-marking in central midfield.
Richarlison connected effectively with left-back Destiny Udogie, who consistently underlapped him. Between the two, they caused Joe Gomez consistent problems.
(Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Son’s goal capped a typically flowing move under Postecoglou. They split the Liverpool defence with a Maddison through ball to Richarlison, who ran in behind Gomez from a wide position, who then crossed low across the box for Son to score. The latter’s first six goals of the season have been assisted by four different players. Who needs Kane?
Liam Tharme
Diogo Jota: Gone in 87 seconds
When you’re down to 10 men, the last thing you need is somebody being silly and making things even harder by getting sent off. Step forward Diogo Jota.
Within 87 seconds, he went from a player with fresh legs after coming on at half time and doing everything he could to help his team survive the Tottenham onslaught to being with Curtis Jones in the dressing room.
Liverpool are the first team in Premier League history to be given as many as four red cards inside their opening seven games of a season.#TOTLIV
— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) September 30, 2023
Both players will feel a sense of injustice, but Jota possibly has more of a case. His first yellow was awarded despite replays showing that Udogie tripped himself up as he strode forward.
But Jota could have no complaints about the second. Instead of sensibly walking a tightrope for the rest of the game, he decided to do the opposite.
After being muscled off the ball by Udogie, he attempted to win possession back with a poorly timed lunge that got nowhere near the ball and connected with Udogie’s foot. Hooper’s decision was simple.
Jota earned praise for his work off the bench when Liverpool went down to 10 men against Newcastle earlier this season. There won’t be any this time. And for the first time in Premier League history, a team has picked up four red cards in their opening seven games.
Jones
Are Liverpool the best reduced-numbers team in the league?
They are getting plenty of practice at it this season, with this being Liverpool’s third game already going down to at least 10 men, but there are fewer better sides more suited to defending with a numerical disadvantage.
(HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images)
Jurgen Klopp switched from a 4-2-3-1 to 4-4-1 when Jones was red-carded, moving Gakpo out to the right and Mohamed Salah centrally to give them space on the break, and they consistently found him and Diaz in transition, more than matching Spurs for chance creation.
After Jota’s red, Klopp went to the rarely spotted 5-3, bringing on Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ibrahima Konate to sure up their right side, where Spurs had found success, while Wataru Endo added more security in central midfield. This did stifle Spurs, whose wide attackers were better with space and momentum, and crosses were limited in effectiveness against Liverpool’s three tall centre-backs.
And it looked like Liverpool were going to escape with the most unlikely of points from north London… until the 96th minute of the game.
Liam Tharme
Spurs leave it late once again
Spurs weren’t even creating chances in what had been an incredibly frustrating final 20-odd minutes or so of the game.
In fact, given that after Jota’s crazy red card Liverpool dug two trenches in defence and midfield and had barely any ambitions to attack, Spurs actually found it tougher to create openings than they did when it was a ding-dong end-to-end.
In the final 20 minutes here, as against Sheffield United in their previous home game, they just slightly lacked clarity of thought in their decision-making and too often slowed the pace of the game down with their passing rather than testing and stretching the opposition with combination moves and rapid passing.
And then, as against the Blades, came an incredible, dramatic, lift-the-roof-off winner. This time in the 96th minute rather than the 100th.
There was audible frustration when Kulusevski chose not to whip a cross into a packed box and elected to play backwards to Cristian Romero. Romero then picked out Pedro Porro who slammed it across goal — and Joel Matip did the rest (although a lurking Richarlison at the back stick would surely have finished the job anyway).
The scenes at full time reflected a tangible feeling of belief, of amazement and of a club that has rediscovered itself. Spurs seriously look to be going places.
Tim Spiers
The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is BUZZING! 🕺🔥 pic.twitter.com/XxGKbNK28v
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 30, 2023
Liverpool so close to heroic point
Heartbreak. Devastation. Call it what you want, but Matip’s late own goal was brutal. It looked like it had been another magnificent show of resiliency against adversity.
It’s a testament to the mentality rebuilt by Klopp — something that had eroded into non-existence last season. His team have rediscovered the trait of never knowing when they are beaten.
The injustice they may have been feeling didn’t leave them feeling sorry for themselves; it only increased their determination to get a result.
Football can be tough, though, and Matip was the victim on this occasion. A point would have been a magnificent achievement for Liverpool in this game. It just wasn’t to be.
(Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
Andy Jones
(Top photo via Getty Images)
