Tottenham Hotspur’s preseason campaign finished with a 2-3 defeat, as Bundesliga side Bayern Munich were too strong for a mercurial Spurs side.
It was a mixed first half for Spurs, as they scored with 25 seconds through Dejan Kulusevski, showing excellent striker skills with an instinctive finish on a move he started as the ball ricocheted off Joshua Kimmich in the Bayern box. From there, though, Bayern took control, with two set piece goals bisected by a goal from Serge Gnabry that was shades of their opener in Seoul: Yves Bissouma was unable to control a poor pass from Guglielmo Vicario in his own box, before Gnabry then drove a grass-cutting shot past Vicario from just outside the box.
Ange Postecoglou made eight changes at the half, and Spurs immediately looked sharper. Dejan Kulusevski picked up a second goal after being fed by Lucas Bergvall. The young midfielder did well to win the ball in the press before playing in his compatriot after interplay with Son Heung-min.
Tottenham pressed late for an equalizer, but were unable to find the breakthrough as both sides cleared the benches.
Here are my top 10 talking points from the match.
1. Selection consistency
After some struggles in the first match against Bayern, it wouldn’t have been surprising to see Ange Postecoglou ring the changes; instead, he made only one, with Yves Bissouma coming in for Archie Gray. Bayern also named a similar side, with Dayot Upamecano coming in for Sacha Boey to strengthen the Germans’ defense, and Jamal Musiala doing the same at the other end of the pitch, replacing Gabriel Vidovic. This probably aided the performance of both teams, with the quality of play high from the start; it was a level that unfortunately Spurs were unable to maintain as the first half wore on.
2. Kulustriker a viable option?
Dejan Kulusevski has played striker through the majority of preseason, and he’s looked good doing it. Opening the scoring in 23 seconds, his ability to fill that role was on full display, with excellent hold-up play to get Spurs up the pitch before an instinctive finish put the Lilywhites a goal to the good. He found himself in a similar position second half, with a tidy right-footed finish after being played in by Lucas Bergvall. Is it his best position in this system, and if so, will he get any chances there with the confirmed signing of Dominic Solanke?
3. Set piece woes
Well, it’s Groundhog Day. Again. An ongoing theme of the 23/24 season was Spurs’ shortcomings on set pieces, and this continued again today in what could be a bad omen for Tottenham’s 24/25 campaign. Both first half goals were pretty simple back-post balls, and the defense’s inability to prevent attacking headers must be raising alarm bells for Ange Postecoglou.
4. Djed’s judgement
Djed Spence had a mixed outing against Bayern in South Korea, and he struggled again here. Though he had a couple of bright moments going forward, he struggled to keep track of Serge Gnabry and routinely lost his opponent when the ball was floated over the top, while his defending in space left a lot to be desired. It’s hard to say whether this was in part due to Djed defending on the left – switching sides as a fullback can play havoc with your judgement of space – but he hasn’t done himself any favors in his effort to back up Pedro Porro.
5. Postecoglou rings the changes
Perhaps unusually for a match at this late stage of preseason, Ange opted to almost clear the bench at half-time, making 8 changes – a departure from the approach in recent matches. While it’s possible the mass substitutions were pre-planned, it’s also quite possible that Postecoglou was extremely dissatisfied with what he saw in the first half and opted to rage-sub the majority of the starting XI. Only Son Heung-min, Dejan Kulusevski, and Guglielmo Vicario escaped the Australian’s ire.
6. Defensive reinforcements
One thing those substitutions allowed was a first look this preseason at 3⁄4 of last season’s starting back four, as Destiny Udogie, Cristian Romero, and Micky van de Ven all took the pitch. Spurs immediately looked more comfortable in defense, especially on the left as Udogie’s ability to defend in space and drive forward immediately quietened the Bayern attack.
7. RB Gray
The other member of the new-look back four was Archie Gray, operating in a right back position for the first time this season. Gray’s luster after an excellent start to preseason had worn off somewhat after a couple of shaky displays in midfield, but he was brilliant at fullback, defending well but also looking great going forward: he showed quick feet and fantastic interplay and passing on a number of occasions to get Spurs up the pitch. Is it possible Postecoglou opts to keep Gray as the backup right back?
8. Tactical fouling 2, electric boogaloo
Bayern, much like in the reverse fixture, were extremely dirty in this match. Chippy fouls to prevent counters went unpunished by the referee, resulting in things going from combative to threatening to boil over with some aggressive challenges that belied the match’s friendly status. One such challenge was by Joao Palhinha late on, as he took a wild swipe at Mikey Moore; Will Lankshear retaliated in kind by flattening the ex-Fulham midfielder, causing a kerfuffle as tempers flared.
9. Bergvall scare
A terrifying moment occurred as Lucas Bergvall collapsed on the pitch partway through the second half. Instrumental in Tottenham’s second goal as he played the ball into Kulusevski, he was pushing for a place in Postecoglou’s starting XI against Leicester; but all that was thrown into doubt as the Swede went down clutching his throat and chest. The scenes were extremely disconcerting, with my immediate thought being a heart issue, but he was soon back to his feet and saw out the rest of the match. Maybe he swallowed a bee?
10. The past and the future
Offsetting that terrifying moment, a quite special one took place late in the match. The substitutions board went up, and Harry Kane stepped on to the Tottenham Hotspur pitch for the first time since his departure. Next to him, though, was young Tottenham academy striker Will Lankshear. It felt in some ways like a passing of the torch; though it remains to be seen if one day Lankshear can step into Kane’s shoes.
Screw it, we’re gonna win the league.
