Tottenham Hotspur continued their impressive start under manager Roberto De Zerbi with a 2-0 victory over Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday, recording their third consecutive league win.
The hosts capitalised on an early dismissal of Jean-Philippe Mateta, who was sent off in the 13th minute for a dangerous challenge on Mickey van de Ven.
Referee Michael Oliver initially showed the Palace striker a yellow card but upgraded it to a straight red following a VAR review.
Tottenham took advantage of their numerical superiority 11 minutes later when Archie Gray headed home Mohammed Kudus’ corner in the 24th minute to give the hosts the lead.
Palace struggled to contain their opponents but managed to prevent further damage before the break, with goalkeeper Dean Henderson making important interventions to keep the deficit at one goal.
Tottenham increased the pressure after the restart, with Mathys Tel and Dominic Solanke coming close to extending their advantage.
However, Henderson continued to frustrate the hosts, producing a fine save to deny Solanke.
The visitors briefly threatened through Dwight McNeil in the 63rd minute after Daichi Kamada picked him out inside the penalty area, but Tottenham’s defence dealt with the danger.
The home side eventually doubled their lead in the 73rd minute when Jan Paul van Hecke reacted quickest after his initial header struck the crossbar, turning in the rebound to seal the victory.
Tottenham dominated the encounter, registering 34 shots against Palace’s two and enjoying 79.4 per cent possession.
The victory also extended their winning run under De Zerbi to three Premier League matches.
The result followed their 2-0 victory over Chelsea last weekend, giving Spurs successive wins in London derbies.
