- Tottenham (24 points) climb to 4th place
- Wolves (15) drop to 11th
- Lamela (27โฒ), Moura (30โฒ), Kane (61โฒ), Neves (68โฒ โ PK), Jimenez (79โฒ โ PK)
Tottenham Hotspur extended their best-ever start in club history with a win away to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday, going fourth in the Premier League table and leapfrogging Arsenal, who dropped points against Liverpool, in the process.
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Things began in disastrous fashion for Spurs, who lost Mousa Dembele โ one of only two central midfielders available for selection on Saturday โ to what appeared to be a nasty ankle injury in the 2nd minute. Ben Davies made a stellar slide tackle to dispossess Helder Costa, but both playersโ bodies momentum took them through Dembele, cutting his legs out from under him and rolling up on his right foot and ankle.
The lack of a midfield presence resulted in a thrillingly open, back-and-forth game with each side having โ but failing with โ a number of chances in the gameโs opening 25 minutes.
Spurs broke through in the 27th minute, though, when Son Heung-min, who replaced Dembele early on, played a ball of the chest of Erik Lamela down the right side of the six-yard box. Lamela managed to unleash a right-footed shot that stayed low and eluded the on-rushing Rui Patricio for the gameโs opening goal.
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It went from 1-0 to 2-0 far quicker โ barely three minutes between goals, in fact. Kieran Trippier delivered the most tempting of crosses toward the back post and found an unmarked Lucas Moura. The Brazilianโs header was completely unchallenged as he doubled Spursโ lead.
Wolves probably should have pulled a goal back in the 37th minute, but the assistant referee appeared to incorrectly flag Matt Doherty for offside in the build-up to Raul Jimenezโs strike past Hugo Lloris.
The second half began with an onslaught at Spursโ goal, but Lloris made a pair of stellar saves inside the first five minutes to preserve the 2-0 scoreline.
Wolvesโ chances were all for naught in the end, though, as Spurs withstand the pressure and put the game to bed just after the hour mark. Patricio made a diving save to deny Harry Kaneโs first effort from Lamelaโs cross, but the rebound fell to Kane who hammered it home from a far tighter angle for 3-0.
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Wolves got their first goal back from the penalty spot in the 68th minute. Juan Foyth took Jimenez down inside the penalty area, and Ruben Neves stepped up to convert the ensuing spot kick.
It was Foyth, again, who rode an orange shirt to the ground 10 minutes later, sending Jimenez 12 yards from goal to make it 3-2. Fortunately for Spurs, thatโs as close as the home side would get.
