Kieran Trippier Tottenham Man of the Match vs. Real Madrid

Tottenham Hotspur right back Kieran Trippier produced his best performance in a Spurs shirt during Wednesday’s 3-1 Champions League win over Real Madrid.

One would think Tottenham Hotspur supporters would know by now to trust manager Mauricio Pochettino whenever he puts together a starting XI for a major contest. Pochettino repeatedly has quieted critics and doubters, most recently when Spurs traveled to Spain to face Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu for a Champions League showdown. Pochettino started a pair of strikers that evening, to the dismay of many supporters, and Spurs returned home with a well-earned point following a 1-1 draw.

Nevertheless, more than a few observers found themselves questioning the Tottenham boss when it was learned Kieran Trippier was getting the nod ahead of Serge Aurier for Wednesday’s clash with the Spanish giants at Wembley Stadium. Trippier couldn’t possibly handle the pace, athleticism and skill possessed by Cristiano Ronaldo in their eyes. Tottenham’s only hope was to sit back, park the bus and hope for a draw.

The 27-year-old right back needed only a few minutes into Wednesday’s game to prove his manager correct. Trippier played the best half of football of his Tottenham career during the opening 45 minutes of what became a 3-1 trouncing of the European champions, and he was so convincing that he earned Man of the Match votes following a contest that featured Dele Alli twice finding the back of the net.

Trippier did everything asked of him and more. He handled Ronaldo in one-on-one situations, limiting the world’s best player to a single noteworthy strike easily handled by goalkeeper Hugo Lloris in the opening frame. He repeatedly completed runs down the flank and tested the Real defense, and he was responsible for the pinpoint cross pushed beyond the line by the previously mentioned Alli.

Perhaps just as important as his first-half display was his steadiness and dependability in defense throughout the final 45 minutes, especially considering Toby Alderweireld suffered a hamstring injury well before halftime. Trippier did well to sit back while keeping eyes forward to search for counterattacking situations after Tottenham opened the scoring, and he was rarely caught out of position as Real pushed forward.

Trippier will never be confused for Aurier or Kyle Walker. He can’t pull blinding speed out of his bag of tricks. He isn’t going to blow past defenders with tantalizing runs that cause those in attendance to leave their seats out of appreciation and anticipation. What he can do, as he showed versus Real, is use his footballing IQ and crossing skills to leave an opponent such as Marcelo scratching his head wondering what just happened.

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Full backs such as Aurier and Walker rely on their athleticism to get them out of jams when they press too far forward or when they make nervy challenges that leave them beaten down the wing, and they also infuriate a manager with unnecessary tackles that earn them cards and, in some instances, early trips to the showers. Trippier’s calming influence at both ends of the pitch versus Real proved to be invaluable. You’d struggle to find a poor moment from him on his biggest night, to date, of the season.

Wednesday evening at Wembley couldn’t have gone much better for Tottenham sans cashing-in on the scoring chances Christian Eriksen, Harry Kane and Moussa Sissoko squandered, and not only because of the result. Aurier now knows he has some company as it pertains to filling in his position in future lineups, which is only a positive for a Tottenham side that lacked depth over the past two campaigns that ended with Spurs coming up short in title pursuits.

It took less than an hour after the final whistle for certain individuals who write columns and who appear on stations such as talkSPORT to attempt to diminish what Tottenham achieved on Wednesday. They accurately pointed out trophies aren’t won in early November, and they feverishly worked to remind all that Spurs won’t be favorites to win any silverware after a single victory.

Since taking over at Tottenham, Pochettino has often preached results don’t matter as much as do individual and team efforts that lead to those scorelines. Never was that more true than his side’s victory over Real. Trippier, a player deemed by some an hour before kickoff as a liability, was Tottenham’s top overall performer en route to Spurs advancing to the knockout stages of the Champions League. That may prove to be far more important than Tottenham earning three points on a European night.

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Kieran Trippier: Tottenham MOTM vs. Real Madrid

By Zac Wassink | Nov 2, 2017

Tottenham Hotspur right back Kieran Trippier produced his best performance in a Spurs shirt during Wednesday’s 3-1 Champions League win over Real Madrid.