Dominic Solanke (£7.2m) scored a superb brace as Tottenham Hotspur battled back to earn a point against Manchester City.
Here are our Scout Notes from north London.
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- READ MORE: FPL notes: Rosenior on his rotation + “world-class” Enzo
- READ MORE: FPL notes: Bruno hauls + “more to come” from Cunha
FRANK ON ROMERO + SOLANKE
Already without 11 senior players due to injury, Tottenham lost captain Cristian Romero (£5.0m) to illness at half-time.
Explaining his withdrawal, Thomas Frank said:
“[It was because of] illness. So, we are assessing him. Hopefully he is fine. He struggled through the Frankfurt game as well but he pushed through that with a fantastic captain’s performance. He struggled a little bit [today] but we hope it’s nothing.” – Thomas Frank on Cristian Romero
Pape Matar Sarr (£4.5m) came on for Romero, with Spurs consequently moving to a back four in the second half. They looked much better as a result.
Solanke, who returned to the starting line-up after his midweek breather, pulled one back for the hosts when he appeared to collide with Marc Guehi’s (£5.2m) leg as he shot, with the ball finding its way into the net.
He followed it up with a brilliant scorpion kick.
In a further boost, Solanke eased any fitness concerns in his post-match interview with Sky Sports, having seemingly picked up an ankle injury prior to this substitution.
“I’ll be good. I just rolled my ankle a little bit, but I’ll be fine.” – Dominic Solanke
When asked specifically about Solanke’s ankle, Frank said:
“The last bit I don’t know, but he clearly also struggled to run, so we knew – struggled to run fitness-wise – before the game again it would be a big push to play 90. He’s not there fitness-wise where he should be, because he’s been out for so long. We’ve been, in a way, a little bit forced to play him. I think it’s pretty evident that he’s relatively important for us – four goals in four games, with him being on his 70-80% of fitness and top sharpness. Imagine City playing without Haaland for six months. We’ve been quite hard hit with injuries, in general, but Dom was excellent.” – Thomas Frank on Dominic Solanke
VAN DE VEN, SPENCE + DANSO LATEST
As previously mentioned, Spurs are in the midst of an injury crisis, with defenders Micky van de Ven (£4.6m), Kevin Danso (£4.2m) and Djed Spence (£4.3m) among those missing out on Sunday.
Providing an update on all three, Frank said:
“Micky [van de Ven] is a minor one. I fully expect him to be available for Man Utd, he just couldn’t make it for this game unfortunately.
“Kevin [Danso], another, I think quite unlucky one. He hyper-extended his big toe when he landed on the foot of an opponent against Frankfurt, that means the ligament snapped in the big toe. It’s extremely unlucky, we don’t know the length of it but we have an appointment next week where we can clarify that and Djed [Spence] has a minor calf injury. I hope Djed is not too long [out].” – Thomas Frank
SIMONS SUPERB
After the half-time tactical adjustment on Sunday, Xavi Simons (£6.5m) and Conor Gallagher (£5.5m) really stepped up for Tottenham.
Simons was arguably Spurs’ best player. He provided the assist for Solanke’s first strike, registering five shots and four chances created.
“Xavi was exceptional today. He’s a very good footballer, but he’s probably an even bigger winner and fighter. So, the way he fights with the team is exceptional, and how he’s part of driving the team forward I think is very impressive.” – Thomas Frank on Xavi Simons
Simons has now racked up 11 shots and 10 chances created over his last three appearances. These figures place him second among all Fantasy midfielders in that period.
The downside is that the fixtures remain really poor until Gameweek 31:
As for Gallagher, he whipped in the cross for Solanke’s second and should bank defensive contribution (DefCon) points in the next update:
SEMENYO SCORES AGAIN
Antoine Semenyo (£7.8m), who was ineligible to face Galatasaray in midweek, returned to the starting XI in north London.
Playing off the left, Semenyo completed his third successive 90-minute appearance in the league (see image below), firing home in a comfortable first half for the visitors, where it could easily have been three or four.
Prior to that, Erling Haaland (£15.0m) provided the assist for Rayan Cherki’s (£6.6m) opener. With four chances created in Gameweek 24, it’s the most he’s managed in a single match all season.
He did, however, waste an excellent chance to add to the lead, and has now produced just one goal in the last seven Gameweeks.
Guehi, meanwhile, racked up four shots at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
As for Cherki, he was replaced midway through the second half, having seemingly picked up an injury, although we haven’t yet seen any quotes from Pep Guardiola to confirm it.
Elsewhere, Rayan Ait-Nouri (£5.7m) started at left-back, with Nico O’Reilly (£5.0m) pushed into central midfield, while Phil Foden (£8.3m) again had to settle for a place on the bench, only appearing for the final few minutes.
