Premier League 2, Division 1. 2019-20
       Hotspur Way, Whitewebbs Lane, Enfield
         Friday 6th December 2019, 12 noon 

               SPURS    v    LIVERPOOL
           (White/Blue)      (All Red)
              4-1-4-1          4-3-3

                4(1)            0(0)

     Joshua Oluwayemi   1  Caoimhin Kelleher
        Timothy Eyoma   2  Neco Williams
          Tariq Hinds   3  Tony Gallacher
        Jamie Bowden(C) 4  Tom Clayton
      Malachi Walcott   5  Morgan Boyes
           Luis Binks   6  Pedro Chirivella(C)
      Dilan Markanday   7  Harvey Elliott
 Tashan Oakley-Boothe   8  Herbie Kane
       Rodel Richards   9  Luis Longstaff
     Armando Shashoua  10  Isaac Christie-Davies
    Phoenix Patterson  11  Tom Hill

       Jubril Okedena  12  Elijah Dixon-Bonner
                           (8)85Mins
      Jonathan De Bie  13  Dan Atherton
         Harvey White  14  Dal Varesanovic
          (9)90+1Mins
Brooklyn Lyons-Foster  15  James Norris
           (10)74Mins      (16)73Mins
       J'Neil Bennett  16  Jack Bearne
           (11)79Mins      (7)16Mins

Scorers:-
Richards 20
Bowden 53, 58both pens), 90+3 

Booked:-
                           Christie-Davies 46(Late)
                           Chirivella 53(Late)
                           Clayton 88(Foul)

Sent Off:-
Walcott 71(Last Man)       Boyes 52(Last Man)

Coach:-
       Wayne Burnett       Neil Critchley

Referee:– Scott Jackson
Assistants:– Bradley Hall & Christopher Myatt
Fourth Official:– Kieran Bailey 

It was a cloudy and wet day for the visit of Liverpool to Hotspur Way as both clubs returned to league action. Liverpool had a good 5-3 win at Brighton in their last game to extend their unbeaten run to seven games while Spurs beat Everton 3-1 away. Last season Liverpool drew 1-1 at Stevenage and 1-1 at Anfield. This season Spurs began with a 4-0 win over the "Reds" and were looking to do the double today.

Spurs lined up with Oluwayemi in goal behind Walcott and Binks with Eyoma at right back and Hinds on the left. Bowden anchored the midfield with Shashoua and Oakley-Boothe ahead of him. They were flanked by Markanday on the right and Patterson on the left in support of Richards up front.

Spurs kicked off the first half attacking the North end with the visitors looking to press high up the pitch. Liverpool did pin Spurs in their own half at first until the tenth minute when Markanday played in Patterson to hit the bar from the edge of the area. The game became more even with both sides moving the ball using the width of the pitch going forward.

The visitors had to make an early change with the influential Elliott (Ed:- Signed in the summer from Fulham, and the "villain" of an insulting comment about Harry Kane) going off before Oakley-Boothe fired over from a ball by Shashoua. Spurs took the lead when Hinds played Richards in to advance and shoot through Kelleher. The Liverpool keeper made amends when he first saved from Patterson and then from Markanday for a corner. Oluwayemi made a good save from Hill when he met a cross from Williams to keep the score at 1-0 at the break.

There were no changes for the start of the second half which saw a bit of bright sun as Liverpool kicked off. Within a minute we saw the first booking for Christie-Davies who was late in on Oakley-Boothe. The game turned Spurs' way when Shashoua raced through the middle into the Liverpool area tempting Boyes into a tackle that was deemed to be a foul by the referee, and as the last man he had to go. Bowden stepped up and hit the ball straight down the middle with Kelleher going to his left.

Just five minutes later Markanday got down the right and came inside to win a second penalty as Chirivella caught him picking up a yellow in the process. Bowden took the second spot kick and hit it high to the keeper's right for his second of the match.

Liverpool tried to respond with Herbie Kane playing Bearne in on the left to draw a save from Oluwayemi who held it at the second attempt. Walcott lost out to Longstaff near the halfway line and pulled him back. While he was not the last man the referee felt that Binks would not have made up the ground and showed the defender the red card to even up the numbers.

Shashoua went off to allow Lyons-Foster to play at right back with Eyoma moving inside next to Binks. Spurs' second change saw Bennett replace Patterson on the left. Kane hit a free kick over the bar before Lyons-Foster exchanged passes with Markanday to get into the area and draw a save from Kelleher for a corner. At the other end Gallacher saw his effort turned wide for a corner before the visitors made their last change bringing on a second striker.

After Williams fired wide for the visitors Spurs made their last change sending on White in place of Richards to stiffen the midfield. Harvey anchored the midfield while Bowden moved further forward which put him in the right place to complete his hat-trick. Before that Liverpool picked up another booking when Clayton dived in on White after he had released the ball. The Spurs skipper attacked the far post, when Markanday got down the right and crossed, to head home his third of the game in added time.

Spurs completed the double over Liverpool and move above them in the table winning both games 4-0. The game had been fairly even until the injection of pace firstly by Shashoua and then Markanday to win the penalties that gave Spurs a 3-0 lead. I doubt that Bowden ever thought that he would come out of this game with the match ball but with regular penalty taker White on the bench he took responsibility and got the reward. The result will give the players confidence for the trip to Munich next week in the last group game of the Champions Youth League.

Ray

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