Tottenham player ratings vs Doncaster Rovers – Joao Palhinha wonderful, 4/10 star abysmal
Tottenham cruised through to the fourth round of the Carabao Cup with a 3-0 win over Doncaster Rovers.
The Lilywhites continued their bright start to the new season and were able to avoid any potential embarrassment with a routine victory over their third-tier opponents on Wednesday night.
Thomas Frank rotated the Spurs team for the visit of the South Yorkshire outfit, and early goals from Joao Palhinha and an own goal from Jay McGrath quickly erased any fears of an upset, before Brennan Johnson capped off the result in stoppage time.
Frank’s men enjoyed a comfortable evening on home turf, and with that in mind, Tottenham News rates the performance of every Spurs player out of 10.
Joao Palhinha shows his class in wonderful display
Joao Palhinha has been a revelation for Tottenham since he arrived on loan from Bayern Munich, and he showed both his experience and his class against Doncaster.
The Portugal international dropped into a centre-back role to allow Archie Gray to play in his natural midfield position, and it was a seamless transition for the 30-year-old.
He gave his side the lead with an overhead kick early on, and used the ball in typically excellent fashion, completing 90% of his passes, but also did the defensive side of the game well.
Palhinha completed nine defensive actions, the second-highest total of any Tottenham player, and won 66% of his duels throughout the encounter.
The former Fulham man has been an excellent signing so far, and he turned in a wonderful 8/10 display on Wednesday night.
Mathys Tel abysmal for Spurs
Mathys Tel has found it difficult at Tottenham in recent weeks.
The French youngster has been starved of football so far during Frank’s reign, but he failed to take his opportunity when it was presented to him on Wednesday night.
He squandered a fantastic opportunity to open the scoring for the hosts in just the third minute, but inexplicably failed to even make contact as the ball was played across the box.
| Stats | Tel Total |
| Touches | 29 |
| Shots (On Target) | 1 (0) |
| Accurate Passes | 12/14 (86%) |
| Key Passes | – |
| Duels Won | 4/10 (40%) |
Another chance fell the way of the 20-year-old midway through the second half, but he miskicked his effort in a finish that was indicative of a player who is struggling for confidence.
Tel had just 29 touches of the ball throughout the evening, a total that was lower than any other Spurs player who started the game.
The former Bayern Munich man struggled to have any sort of positive impact on the game and was worthy of little more than a 4/10 rating.
Tottenham player ratings vs Doncaster Rovers
Antonin Kinsky – 7
Pedro Porro – 7
Joao Palhinha – 8
Kevin Danso – 7
Djed Spence – 6
Archie Gray – 7
Rodrigo Bentancur – 7
Brennan Johnson – 6
Xavi Simons – 7
Wilson Odobert – 6
Mathys Tel – 4
Substitutes
Richarlison – 6
Lucas Bergvall – 6
Destiny Udogie – 6
Luca Williams-Barnett – N/A
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