Tottenham player ratings at Newcastle: Spurs survive and advance

Dele Alli-8.5

The precocious English international put on a real display against the Magpies. He didn’t get on the ball as much as he would like, but he was deadly when he got opportunities in space. Dele ended up with the match-deciding goal when he smartly turned in Aurier’s brilliant cross with a tidy header.

He was more influential than just that goal though. Dele was neat with the ball and his late-runs gave Newcastle’s defence real problems. Mohamed Diame will be having nightmares about Dele for the foreseeable future. It was an excellent start the campaign for the Tottenham danger man.

Christian Eriksen-6.5

It must be said, it was a bit of an anonymous performance from the Danish maestro. He didn’t do anything to hurt his team, but he really couldn’t get going. Eriksen might be a player who will need a bit of rest after a taxing World Cup campaign.

On the bright side, Eriksen was better than normal in defence. He was very active there and even competed for a few headers in traffic. That will never be his forte, but it was nice to see him show solid improvement. Eriksen will have better days ahead, but even his weaker performances are pretty decent.

Lucas Moura-6

The Brazilian wide man got the chance to start this match on the back of a strong preseason campaign. Unfortunately, he just couldn’t make anything happen in his Premier League opener. That doesn’t mean he didn’t provide Rafa Benitez’s defence with some problems, but it does mean he couldn’t find a moment of real quality.

Similar to Eriksen, he did showcase improved effort on the other end of the pitch. Lucas pressed the ball with really good energy. That should be enough to keep him in Pochettino’s plans for the time being.