Playing for 90
Fansided

Tottenham player ratings v Bournemouth- Spurs dominate despite Alli’s struggles

By Rucker Haringey

LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 15: Christian Eriksen of Tottenham Hotspur shows appreciation to the fans as he walks off to be subbed during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and AFC Bournemouth at White Hart Lane on April 15, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 15: Christian Eriksen of Tottenham Hotspur shows appreciation to the fans as he walks off to be subbed during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and AFC Bournemouth at White Hart Lane on April 15, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 6
Next
LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 15: Mousa Dembele of Tottenham Hotspur in action during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and AFC Bournemouth at White Hart Lane on April 15, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 15: Mousa Dembele of Tottenham Hotspur in action during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and AFC Bournemouth at White Hart Lane on April 15, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images) /

Mousa Dembele-8.5

If not for Kane’s stellar performance, Dembele would have been my Man of the Match. While I’m sure everyone enjoyed his opening goal, it was his patented control of the midfield that I enjoyed the most.

I suspect Bournemouth’s midfield will be seeing the talented Belgian in their nightmares. He was everywhere for the full 90 minutes. Every time the Cherries thought they had a glimmer of space, he closed them down and regained possession for Spurs. Dembele used every trick in his bag to lock down the midfield for Pochettino.

More from Playing for 90

Eric Dier-7

I was a bit surprised when Dier got the start today. Victor Wanyama was allegedly fully fit and I thought he’d return to the starting XI. In his absence, Dier put in a solid, but unspectacular shift.

I suspect it won’t be enough to keep him ahead of Wanyama in Pochettino’s pecking order. Dier did a solid job of shielding the back four, but didn’t really provide the club much moving forward.

In fairness, Dier didn’t have a ton to do. Tottenham had so much of the ball that his defensive efforts weren’t often required. Still, Dier will be disappointed he didn’t provide his squad a bit more in the middle of the pitch.

Home/Tottenham Hotspur