There is a new candidate for everything in the Premier League: Tottenham Hotspur. Ange Postecoglou's men, despite playing the entire second half with one less due to Yves Bissouma being sent off for simulation, beat Luton Town with a goal from Micky Van de Ven and are leaders of the league.
In the absence of Manchester City playing against Arsenal this Sunday, the 'Spurs' climb to the top of the table after a dirty match at Kenilworth Road. A match that they could have killed in the first half, with chances everywhere for Richarlison, but which was complicated by Bissouma's expulsion for a double yellow and for simulation.
Despite the inferiority, Van de Ven, the defensive bet of the season, took advantage of a genius from James Maddison to score the only goal of the game and get three points that leave Tottenham two above City.
The Dutch central defender covered up the shortcomings of a Richarlison who had two chances in the first minutes to have drawn blood in Luton, but is still unsuccessful in front of goal. The Brazilian first missed a cross that left him without a goalkeeper, impaling the deflected ball, and later missed a one-on-one against a great Kaminski, who also prevented Kulusevski's goal with a spectacular low goal.
The Belgian was Luton's hero to leave them alive in the 45 minutes and so that they could dream from the childish expulsion of Bissouma, who went out in ten minutes for a foul and later for a simulation in front of the area.
The red card forced Postecoglou to remove Richarlison to put Hojbjerg in the center of the field and, despite the fact that Luton now had a great advantage on the field and that Adebayo missed an unbeatable chance without a goalkeeper, it was the 'Spurs' who who went ahead.
In a corner, Maddison danced a defender on the baseline and put a back pass in which Van de Ven pivoted on his body to accommodate him and score his first goal with the Tottenham shirt with the inside.
A goal that sealed the match, with barely any isolated approach from Luton in the final minutes, and returned Tottenham to the top of the table for the first time since the times of José Mourinho.
Now it remains to be seen if it will be a temporary leadership or if this Tottenham of Postecoglou has enough gunpowder to fight for the league championship. Luton, however, remains in seventeenth position with four points.
Check here the classification and all the results of the day in the Premier League
0 - Luton Town: Kaminski; Brown (Berry, m.66), Burke, Lockyer (Barkley, m.81), Andersen (Most, m.59); Mpanzu (Chong, m.67), Nakamba, Adebayo (Woodrow, m.67), Ogbene; and Morris.
1 - Tottenham Hotspur: Vicar; Leek, Rosemary, Van de Ven, Udogie (Davies, m.82); Sarr, Bissouma, Madison (Skipp, m.76); Richarlison (Hojbjerg, m.46), Kulusevski (Veliz, m.92) and Son (Emerson, m.76).
Goals: 0-1. Van de Ven (m.52).
Referee: John Brooks cautioned Lockyer (m.19) and Morris (m.34) for Luton and Hojbjerg (m.68) for Tottenham. He sent off Bissouma for a double yellow (m.38 and 45 4).
Incidents: Match corresponding to the eighth day of the Premier League played at the Kenilworth Road stadium (Luton).
