No revival in sight for 'fragile' Spurs after Villa defeat

Tottenham have failed to win in more than half of their last 36 Premier League matches after conceding the opening goal, with the outcome often settled by halftime. They dominated the opening 20 minutes, as Villa goalkeeper Zion Suzuki denied efforts from Savio and Archie Gray, but without a goal they remained vulnerable at the opposite end. In first-half injury time a Villa goal became almost inevitable. Andy Robertson attempted to block a cross, only to deflect the ball to John McGinn; after Boubacar Kamara’s attempt, Manzambi tapped in from close range, compounding the injury to Van de Ven—a blow to the head that kept him off the pitch. Some Tottenham supporters missed the goal as they headed for halftime refreshments, yet approximately 1,000 remained in their seats until the final whistle. The crowd streamed out of the stands after Buendia’s superb 25‑yard strike found the top corner in the 79th minute, overlooking Gallagher’s and Van Hecke’s late efforts. De Zerbi said: "My absorption is wherefore we concede the archetypal extremity with 10 players, we tin enactment stronger, pass much and more, support successful a compact way." "I enactment [Rodrigo] Bentancur arsenic a centre-back successful that infinitesimal and Mateus Fernandes arsenic a midfielder. If we person a reddish paper we tin play 70 minutes with 10 players." "In the 2nd fractional we scored the extremity with [Mohammed] Kudus, offside, I don't cognize if immoderate players mislaid vigor but we conceded an unacceptable goal. We knew this play Aston Villa are playing 86% much agelong balls than past season."