Dejan Kulusevski made his best impression of James Maddison, scoring one goal and assisting another, as Tottenham beat Nottingham Forest 2-0 and moved closer to the Premier League’s top four on Friday.
[ MORE: Premier League on Peacock ]
The win puts Tottenham within touch (33) with three-time defending champions Manchester City in fourth place, now just four points behind leaders Liverpool, as the halfway point of the season temporarily approaches. After picking up just one point from five games in a row following long-term injuries to playmaker Maddison and centre-back Micky van de Ven, Ange Postecoglou’s side bounced back with back-to-back wins over Newcastle and Forest in six days.
Forest (14 places), meanwhile, remain in 16th place in the table, with Steve Cooper in position for another week of speculation about his managerial position. The Tricky Trees are five places above the relegation zone after 17 games played.
Spurs and Forest traded counter-attacking opportunities for most of the first half, as the team looked to exploit the other with speed down the pitch. Just when it looked like a 0-0 draw at half-time, Richarlison soared higher for r Kulusevski. cross and score the first goal with a header. For the first time in his Tottenham career, Richarlison has scored in back-to-back games after scoring a brace against Newcastle last weekend.
Willy Boly had Nottingham Forest’s best chance to equalise in the 49th minute, but the burly defender fired his shot into the afternoon sky despite having plenty of time and space to regroup before the shot.
15 minutes later, the crisis hit Forest and USMNT No. 1 Matt Turner and Spurs led 2-0. Turner attempted a desperate long-range pass from his own six-yard box, but the ball flew straight at Kulusevski 25 yards from goal. The Swede beat a defender and smashed a right-footed shot from Turner’s hands into the back of the net.
Yves Bissouma was sent off after 70 minutes for a highly dangerous tackle on Ryan Yates. Bissouma put his studs into Yates’ knee as the two challenged for a 50-50 ball. After initially receiving a yellow card, Bissouma was shown red for the second time in eight appearances. The Mali international will be banned for four games, but likely won’t feature for Spurs again until late January or early February as he is eligible to return a day after the Africa Cup of Nations kicks off, on Jan. 13.
Spurs will head into Christmas and Boxing Day with an Everton game next Saturday (10am). ET), while Nottingham Forest will host Bournemouth at the same time.
FotMob.com
Scorers: Richarlison (45′ 1), Dejan Kulusevski (65′)
Start: 3 p. m. ET Friday (December 15) TV Channel: USA NetworkOnline: Broadcast NBCSports. com
Turner – Boly, Murillo, Niakhate – Williams, Yates, Mangala, Kouyaté, Toffolo – Elanga, Gibbs-White
Vicar – Porro, Romero, Davies, Udogie – Bissouma, Sarr – Johnson, Kulusevski, fils, Richarlison
OUT: Taiwo Awoniyi (groin), Serge Aurier (calf) | QUESTIONABLE: Murillo (thigh)
OUT: James Maddison (ankle – out until New Year), Micky van de Ven (hamstring – out until New Year), Rodrigo Bentancur (ankle), Ryan Sessegnon (thigh), Eric Dier (groin), Manor Solomon (knee), Ivan Perisic (knee), Alfie Whiteman (ankle).
(C) 2023 NBC Universal