Brennan Johnson scored twice as a resurgent Tottenham Hotspur made it three successive Premier League wins with a 4-1 victory at Ipswich Town.
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The Wales international, whose father David Johnson played for the Tractor Boys between 1997 and 2001, bagged a first-half double, while Djed Spence and Dejan Kulusevski were each on target late on to seal victory at Portman Road.
Johnson was in the right place at the right time twice in the space of eight minutes to convert a pair of Son Heung-Min assists, though Omari Hutchinson halved the deficit before the break with an impressive goal for the hosts.
The result remained in the balance until the closing stages, when a deflected Spence shot and Kulusevski’s fine individual goal ultimately condemned Ipswich to a seventh defeat in eight home league matches.
Kieran McKenna’s side remain 18th, but they are now five points from safety following Wolverhampton Wanderers’ surprise win at AFC Bournemouth. Spurs remain 12th, six points adrift of the top 10.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 |
Fulham
FUL
|
26 | +3 | 39 |
| 11 |
Brentford
BRE
|
26 | +5 | 37 |
| 12 |
Spurs
TOT
|
26 | +15 | 33 |
| 13 |
Crystal Palace
CRY
|
26 | -1 | 33 |
| 14 |
Everton
EVE
|
26 | -4 | 31 |
| 15 |
Man Utd
MUN
|
26 | -7 | 30 |
How the match unfolded
In a relatively even opening half, it was Spurs who struck first in the 18th minute. Son latched on to a long ball over the top of the hosts’ defence down the left and made good ground before laying it on a plate for Johnson to tap in from close range.
The same two players combined as the visitors doubled their lead, with Son again being found in space before he centred the ball for Johnson to apply the finishing touch with a low finish.
Ipswich may have felt hard done by to be two goals behind and they halved the deficit in the 36th minute when Kalvin Phillips stole possession and fed Jack Clarke, who cut the ball back for Hutchinson to sweep a brilliant first-time finish beyond Guglielmo Vicario.
Spurs restored their two-goal lead in the 77th minute when Ipswich substitute Luke Woolfenden, who had a header ruled out for offside earlier on, deflected Spence’s shot beyond helpless home goalkeeper Alex Palmer after the Spurs full-back had been cleverly found by James Maddison.
Kulusevski then added further gloss to the scoreline. After being set up by Dane Scarlett six minutes from time, the winger cut inside from the right and curled an excellent effort in off the far post.
Ipswich's lack of home comfort continues
The only side yet to record a Premier League victory in 2025, Ipswich had been buoyed by their hard-earned 1-1 draw at Villa Park last weekend.
They were quick out of the blocks here and it took smart reflex saves from Vicario to thwart Liam Delap and Jaden Philogene inside the opening 30 seconds, while the former also saw a header come back off the woodwork.
But despite their promising start, Ipswich switched off at the other end, affording Son too much space down the left to tee up Johnson for both goals, from which point a costly defeat always looked likely.
To their credit, the hosts recovered well – aided by Hutchinson’s well-taken goal – and finished the first half strongly, while carrying the greater attacking threat for large periods after the break as well.
However, they could not turn their positive play into an equaliser, and any hopes of not leaving the contest empty-handed were ended when the visitors struck twice inside the final quarter of an hour.
Ipswich’s bid to avoid the drop has not been helped by their home form. Since their only league win at Portman Road this season, against Chelsea in December, they have lost four matches in a row in front of their own fans by an aggregate score of 14-2.
Ipswich are away to another under-pressure team in desperate need of momentum, Manchester United, on Wednesday.
Johnson haunts father’s former club
Around this time 25 years ago, David Johnson’s goals were instrumental towards Ipswich sealing their return to the Premier League. But a quarter of a century later, his son Brennan’s goals have dented their hopes of remaining in the top flight.
After breaking the deadlock with a tap-in on the line, Johnson doubled his and Spurs’ tally with a neat first-time finish.
Given their knack of surrendering points from winning positions this season, Spurs will not have been sitting comfortably after Hutchinson halved the deficit and Woolfenden’s headed goal was disallowed.
However, after keeping their rejuvenated hosts at bay to prevent them getting on level terms, Spence’s deflected strike settled their nerves.
Spurs then ensured any faint hopes Ipswich may have had of mounting a dramatic fightback were firmly dashed, as Kulusevski sent a delicious effort beyond the dive of Palmer, giving Spurs a third straight league win for the first time since December 2023.
It's a huge match at home to champions Manchester City up next. While their league position remains unchanged, Spurs go into that contest in much better shape and with greater confidence than they had even just a week ago.
Club reports
What the managers said
Kieran Mckenna: "We had a great start to the game. I thought we were the better team in the first half, but we were not able to cash in on a good start.
"Their execution was top and our defending in those moments wasn't good enough. They were clinical."
Ange Postecoglou: "They're [Ipswich] one of the hardest-working teams in the league. You know you're going up against a battle and a contest - we had to do that today. First half, we could have done better. We allowed them some moments, but in the second half we dug in."
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Key facts
Spurs have won three consecutive Premier League games for the first time since December 2023, as many victories as in their previous 15 matches in the competition (D2 L10).
Ipswich have picked up just seven points at home in the Premier League this season (W1 D4 L9), indeed only Southampton (four points) have gained fewer in the top four tiers of English Football in 2024/25, while only three sides have lost more than the Tractor Boys' nine defeats (Southampton 11, Morecambe, and Shrewsbury, 10).
Spurs have won four Premier League away games this season by three or more goals. Only in 2016/17 (five) have they ever won more such matches in a season.
Johnson scored his first Premier League brace for Spurs and his first in the competition since March 2023 for Nottingham Forest against Everton. He now has nine Premier League goals this season, his most in a single campaign.
