Bournemouth ended an 11-game winless run as they came from behind to beat Tottenham Hotspur, heaping further pressure on Thomas Frank whose side have now won just one of their last six league games.
Joao Palhinha’s brilliant overhead kick seemed to have earned a draw for Frank’s side but then, in the 95th minute, Antoine Semenyo produced an equally stunning strike from distance to win the game for his team with his 10th league goal of the season.
The hosts conceded the opening goal far too easily, with Mathys Tel cutting in from the left and arrowing his shot into the bottom-right corner in the fifth minute after being put through by a neat Xavi Simmons back heel.
But Bournemouth were ahead before the break. Marcus Tavernier was given time and space to produce a dangerous cross from the right which Evanilson magnificently headed home, leaving Guglielmo Vicario with no hope.
Another Tavernier cross from almost the same position again caused Tottenham problems, with Marcos Senesi’s cutback giving Eli Junior Kroupi a simple tap-in for his seventh goal of the season.
Referee Darren England had awarded Tottenham a penalty after the break when Micky van de Ven was brought down in the box after a marauding run from defence, but he overturned his decision after a VAR check, much to Van de Ven’s chagrin, which earned the defender a yellow card.
But minutes later Palhinha put Spurs level with a superb effort. A fingertip save from Djordje Petrovic late on prevented Van de Ven from putting the visitors ahead with a header, the save proving crucial as Semenyo, on his 26th birthday and possibly final match for Bournemouth, scored the winner.
Why do Tottenham keep conceding the same sort of goal?
What made this defeat so painful was that Tottenham fought back into the game, Palhinha’s overhead kick with 12 minutes left making it 2-2.
Spurs even had a platform to go on and win the game. But the frustrating thing about Tottenham this season is that they keep making the same mistakes week after week. And any Spurs fan will tell you that they have a terrible habit of conceding to shots taken from just outside the box. Even with so many men back, Spurs leave plenty of room for opponents to get shots off. And those opponents keep finding the bottom corner of Guglielmo Vicario’s net.
So it was again tonight at Bournemouth, when Semenyo picked up the loose ball and — before Richarlison could get over to block him — put the ball into the far-bottom corner. It was a brilliant hit from a fantastic player. But it was also punishing a mistake that Tottenham have made far too often. Which meant that their hard work in this game ended up counting for nothing.
Jack Pitt-Brooke
How did Tottenham lose control?
The most frustrating thing for Tottenham was the fact that they actually started this game far better than normal.
Spurs begun positively, moving the ball forward with purpose, taking advantage of the return to the team of Simons after three games out suspended. That industry led to their early goal, when Simons drove them forward before setting up Tel. It felt for a moment as if we might be watching a different Tottenham, more positive and purposeful. They even made chances to score a second, especially with Lucas Bergvall from distance.
Eli Junior Kroupi celebrates scoring Bournemouths second of the match (Michael Steele/Getty Images)
But they never took advantage of those, and that made it even more frustrating how Spurs lost control of the game. They let Bournemouth — without a league win since October — back into the contest. And they switched off twice when Bournemouth scored two goals starting with crosses from the right wing before the interval.
It felt like the clearest sign of Spurs’ fragility. That even in a game like this, against a team in such poor form, and with an early lead, Spurs could still not hold onto their advantage.
Jack Pitt-Brooke
Did Tel impress again on the left?
Mathys Tel has found himself on the outside looking in for much of this season, starting just four times in the league. Before the 1-1 draw with Sunderland on Sunday, none of those had come in his preferred left-wing position. But he looked lively and threatening from the opening whistle against Sunderland and, for that, he earned a second start in a row.
Tel offers something different to the rest of Tottenham’s wide players. Unlike Wilson Odobert and Mohammed Kudus, Tel’s first instinct is to shoot whenever he’s around the opposition box. That tendency was evident inside 20 seconds against Sunderland, firing a driven shot on target. Shortly after, he bent a curling effort just wide of the post. Then, against Bournemouth, he found the net from a seemingly impossible wide angle to open the scoring.
Mathys Tel celebrates scoring the opening goal of the game (Dan Mullan/Getty Images)
After receiving a pass from Xavi Simons on the left touchline, Tel isolated the full-back, pushing him into the Bournemouth box, before shifting right and firing a powerful and accurate shot into the bottom-right corner. It was a brilliant goal, and Tottenham’s first from open play in 592 minutes.
While Spurs faltered under pressure as a unit, Tel continued shining in the first half. His first touch was crisp and he found solutions to dribble out of tight situations on several occasions. With Kudus out injured and Brennan Johnson now plying his trade for Crystal Palace, it appears the left-wing spot is now firmly Tel’s to lose.
Elias Burke
Why was Thomas Frank holding an Arsenal cup?
(Andrew Matthews/PA Images via Getty Images)
Prior to the match, Frank was pictured drinking from a small cup with the Arsenal club crest on it. He told reporters after the match that it would have been “extremely stupid” to have used an Arsenal-branded cup deliberately.
Arsenal played at the Vitality Stadium on January 3, leading Frank to say: “They’ve (Arsenal) been in there, the changing room, the game before us. Take a cup, give me an espresso. I do that before every game.
“It’s a little bit sad in football that I need to be asked a question about that. I think we’re definitely going the wrong direction if we need to worry about me having a cup with another logo of another club where, of course, I’ll never do that. That’s extremely stupid.”
Frank, who is growing accustomed to boos and jeers from the Tottenham support, did his reputation no favours with this incident, even if it was unintentional.
Aside from the poor performance levels and issues with the style of play, Spurs fans have picked up on Frank’s habit of mentioning Arsenal frequently in press conferences, so seeing their head coach holding an Arsenal-branded cup would only add fuel to the fire.
Most recently, Frank referred to Spurs’ north London rivals in relation to Vinai Venkatesham, who was Arsenal chief executive before taking the same role at Tottenham last year, and the long-term faith he placed in Mikel Arteta, despite patches of underwhelming results.
He has also praised the quality of their team and players. It would be advisable for Frank to avoid mentioning Arsenal again in the near future, if he can help it.
Elias Burke
What next for Spurs?
Saturday, January 10: Aston Villa (Home), FA Cup third round, 5.45pm UK, 12.45pm ET