Tottenham climbed up to fourth in the Premier League rankings with a resounding 5-1 comeback win at home to Newcastle, piling pressure on rivals Arsenal.
After Fabian Schar’s free-kick sailed past Hugo Lloris, goals from Ben Davies and Matt Doherty either side of half-time turned the game around, and Spurs kept their foot on the pedal for a significant win that boosts them confidence for the run-in.
Antonio Conte’s Spurs needed a two-goal cushion to rise above their north London rivals, so Son finished a great play begun by the superb Harry Kane.
Despite being a surprise absentee from the scoresheet, Kane put in a man of the match performance. Instead, Emerson Royal added a fourth goal with his first for the club, and sub Steven Bergwijn completed the thrashing by racing through the heart of a suddenly exposed Newcastle defense.
It’s the first time Tottenham have qualified for the Champions League since September, and with three Premier League victories in a row, Antonio Conte’s usually erratic side appears to be finding form at the perfect time.
Arsenal can restore their top-four status with a point at Crystal Palace on Monday Night Football, but the yet-to-be-rearranged postponed derby between the two rivals is building up to be crucial.
When Newcastle fell behind 2-1, what had appeared to be an outstanding away day performance for 43 minutes quickly unraveled, with manager Eddie Howe regretting how his team “chased the game in a very aggressive way.” They’ve now dropped their previous three games, although they’re still nine points clear of the drop zone.
Tottenham’s first match in their new stadium was three years ago, and only Manchester City and Liverpool have won more points on their own turf since then. Tottenham dominated possession and had as much as 83 percent of the ball in the first 15 minutes, demonstrating their home advantage.
Newcastle, on the other hand, has a strong away record at Tottenham, having won four of their previous seven and going undefeated in their two visits to the new stadium, and they did well to keep Spurs to a deflected Rodrigo Bentancur shot, a Kane shot wide, and an off-target Eric Dier free-kick in the first half.
When Newcastle did have the ball, they posed a threat, with Cristian Romero stopping Allan Saint-Maximin and then making a critical block to deny Joe Willock from seven yards out.
And it was Howe’s team who took the lead on 39 minutes, due to a helping hand from Son, who collided with Willock on the edge of the box, and goalie Lloris, who should have done better with Schar’s low shot.
Three minutes later, Son made amends for his error by curving in a lovely cross for Davies to head home his first Premier League goal since 2017.
Tensions were high moments before the halftime whistle, with Joelinton, Bentancur, and Saint-Maximin all receiving yellow cards for pushing near the touchline, but Spurs responded positively three minutes later, with Doherty – playing in an unfamiliar left wing-back role – darting in to head home Kane’s excellent cross at the back post.
On 54 minutes, Son scored to put his side out of reach – he now has the most Premier League goals at this ground with 27, more than any other player. The most recent was beautifully planned, with Kane releasing Dejan Kulusevski to select the South Korean from the box.
Soon after, Schar made a brave block to keep Kane out, but Emerson got himself into the six-yard box to add the fourth goal from Doherty’s cross with just 63 minutes on the clock on an afternoon when Son was joined by some surprising goal scorers.
As Spurs piled on the pressure against an increasingly ragged Newcastle, Son was kicking himself for shooting wide from a good opening, and sub Harry Winks bent an effort over the bar. It wasn’t surprising to see a fifth goal go in, with Lucas Moura bundling through the middle of the park before playing in Bergwijn for a cool finish.
