Spurs see off City to remain only unbeaten team in the Premier League

After their 3-1 win at Swansea, Pep Guardiola’s side had looked like a perfect 10 - Manchester City had won each of their first 10 matches in all competitions and talk went beyond an unbeaten season to musing of whether it could be perfect. But it was Brendan Rodgers Celtic who took a little shine off of Guardiola’s start to Mancunian life in the 3-3 draw at Celtic Park just 4 days after the win at Swansea.

City headed to London on Sunday afternoon to face the only other unbeaten team in the Premier League. A team with the best defensive record in the league - conceding just a single goal in their 5 matches at White Hart Lane this season. Historically Tottenham have struggled in matches following one in Europe - but Mauricio Pochettino has been evolving his side to one that can cope with additional competition.

Spurs made just two changes to the side that beat Middlesbrough with man of the moment Heung-Min Son moving to a central role up front in place of Vincent Janssen. And Danny Rose, back from injury, replaced Ben Davies at the back. City made three changes to the team that had faced Swansea. Jesus Navas came in for injured Kevin De Bruyne. Fernando started his first league game this season in place of Ilkay Gündogan and Pablo Zabaleta replaced Bacary Sagna.

The previous 6 meetings between these sides had seen an impressive 26 goals scored. There as bound to be goals at White Hart Lane on Sunday. But who knew that Own Goal will pop up for the opener just 9 minutes into the game. Aleksander Kolarov failed to deal with a cross whipped into his box by Danny Rose. It was the first time this season that Guardiola’s side had been trailing in a Premier League match.

Tottenham maintained their tenacity throughout the first half keeping Manchester City pinned into their own half. City looked uncharacteristically disorganised all over the pitch - whether it was from the surprise mid-week draw or the lineup changes, Spurs were facing them in the perfect moment and were able to capitalise the erratic display of Nicolas Otamendi.

Heung-Min Son may not have scored but he had a direct hand in Tottenham’s second goal. Son and Alli weaved through City's midfield towards their box. Son drifted wide playing an incisive pass into Alli who eased the ball past Claudio Bravo putting the home side well and truly in control of the match.

Guardiola made swift changes in the second half replacing Fernando with Güdogan to change the shape and offer a more effective creative outlet. It looked like a case of too little too late for Manchester City. Tottenham are resolute in defence this season, and with a two goal lead they could afford to be more conservative in their approach in the second half to make themselves even more difficult to break down.

Pochettino’s side were the first team to stop Manchester City’s formidable attack since Manchester United back in March. City had scored two or more goals in 12 of the 14 Premier League matches before their trip to White Hart Lane. Making Sunday’s result all the more impressive.

While Hugo Lloris and Tottenham’s defence are deservedly getting plaudits for their display - the unsung hero was Victor Wanyama who won possession 9 times, made 6 tackles and committed 5 fouls to ensure that City never really got a foot in the game. He was tireless and always seemed to be in the right place at the right time. He frustrated City’s potential for fluid attacking football.

Guardiola had anticipated how Pochettino’s side would approach the game - even if he wasn’t able to contain in. In his pre-match press conference he said: "When you watch Tottenham you can enjoy it. They are active in their game, not reactive. They want to be protagonists. They don't wait. They want to create their own game. That's why I like them. When I saw against CSKA Moscow and against Middlesbrough, I like the way they played." Two managers came into Sunday’s match with unbeaten Premier League records this term - but only Mauricio Pochettino has kept his in tact. 

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