Tottenham Hotspur recovered from a slow start to see off Brentford 3-1 in Saturday's London derby.
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Ange Postecoglou’s side fell behind after just 23 seconds as Bryan Mbeumo superbly volleyed home Keane Lewis-Potter’s cross.
However, the hosts hit back seven minutes later through Dominic Solanke's first goal for the club after Mark Flekken parried James Maddison’s initial effort.
Brennan Johnson's neat strike completed the turnaround inside the opening half an hour, while Maddison rounded off a swift counter to seal the victory late on.
Spurs move above their opponents into 10th place in the Premier League with seven points, one more than Thomas Frank’s team in 12th after five rounds of matches.
How the match unfolded
Brentford, who stunned Manchester City after just 22 seconds last weekend, came flying out of the blocks once more with Mbeumo volleying them into the lead in north London.
That advantage only lasted until the eighth minute, though, as Spurs responded well to falling behind. Maddison pounced on Ethan Pinnock's loose pass and Flekken could only push his shot straight to Solanke, who tucked home the rebound.
Johnson then rounded off a swift counter on 28 minutes when he fired past Flekken from a tight angle to make it goals in back-to-back games in all competitions.
Flekken and Guglielmo Vicario made some good saves to keep the scoring down, but Spurs made sure of the win when Cristian Romero broke up a Brentford attack five minutes from time and found Son Heung-min, who squared for Maddison to dink home.
Spurs come from behind again
Postecoglou's men left it late against Coventry City in their midweek EFL Cup win – Djed Spence equalising in the 88th minute and Johnson snatching victory in stoppage time.
While today’s turnaround was not quite as dramatic, it was equally as effective as they put their North London derby disappointment behind them.
The team scoring first had not won the previous four Premier League meetings between the sides, so Spurs will not have been too concerned by Mbeumo's early strike.
Their response was superb. Solanke was in the right place at the right time to open his Spurs account with the equaliser, while Johnson finished well across Flekken.
The hosts looked dangerous every time they went forward, and some of the exchanges were breathtaking to watch.
Some smart Flekken saves prevented the scoreline from being more comfortable for Postecoglou's side, but they could eventually breathe easier when Maddison put the result beyond doubt.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Liverpool
LIV
|
12 | +16 | 31 |
| 2 |
Man City
MCI
|
12 | +5 | 23 |
| 3 |
Chelsea
CHE
|
12 | +9 | 22 |
| 4 |
Arsenal
ARS
|
12 | +9 | 22 |
| 5 |
Brighton
BHA
|
12 | +5 | 22 |
| 6 |
Spurs
TOT
|
12 | +14 | 19 |
| 7 |
Nott'm Forest
NFO
|
12 | +2 | 19 |
Brentford's fast start fizzles out
Although they left the Etihad Stadium empty-handed last week, Brentford could certainly take plenty of positives from their performance against the reigning champions.
The Bees built on that momentum with another scintillating start, becoming only the second team in Premier League history – after City – to score in the opening minute of successive games.
However, for the second week running, they saw their early lead overturned, with Spurs' pace and power on the counter just too hot to handle. All three goals came after sloppiness in possession was ruthlessly punished.
To their credit, Brentford stuck to the task and made sure they stayed in the contest until the 85th minute, when Maddison sealed the points.
Nevertheless, their form is certainly ropey away from the Gtech Community Stadium, where they have won both their opening two fixtures this season, so they will be thankful for back-to-back home outings against West Ham and Wolves to come.
See: Spurs report | Brentford report
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What the managers said
Ange Postecoglou: "It was fun, it was exciting, it was exactly who we want to be. We kept them in the game by not getting that third goal. It had a little bit of everything. We needed Vicario a couple of times, so he contributed to the game, everyone contributed. It obviously wasn't an ideal start but it's almost like that never happened. The boys just got on with it, they didn't let it affect them, and I'm really pleased for them."
Thomas Frank: "There are a lot of positives and also some things we need to do better against a good Spurs side. The first 28 minutes, aside from the first minute when we scored, they were on top and we struggled with their intensity and pressure; the last 60 we did well and made it very difficult for Spurs. But they have a stand that’s bigger than our stadium, and that needs to be put into perspective. We try to win every game, we fear no one and I like the bravery from my players, but we need to perform over 90 minutes."
Match facts
Courtesy of Mbeumo’s strike after 23 seconds, Brentford became just the second team to score in the opening minute of consecutive Premier League games after Man City in February 2019 (v Newcastle and Arsenal).
Since the start of last season, Brentford have dropped more points from winning positions than any other side in the Premier League (36), while only Man City (30) have won more points from behind than Spurs (28).
Mbeumo’s goal for Brentford after 23 seconds was the earliest Spurs have conceded in the Premier League since November 2013, when Jesus Navas scored after 13 seconds for Manchester City.
Maddison has both scored and assisted in a Premier League game for the first time for Spurs, last doing so in the competition in May 2023 for Leicester against Fulham.