Van de Ven red card sparks Tottenham collapse as Crystal Palace win 3-1
Tottenham were leading 1-0 and looking comfortable. Ten minutes later they were 3-1 down, reduced to ten men, and watching their fans stream for the exits. That is the story of another grim night at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where Crystal Palace completed a remarkable first-half turnaround to win 3-1 on Wednesday.
Ten minutes that wrecked Spurs' evening
Dominic Solanke's 34th-minute goal looked like it might ease some of the tension around the ground. Spurs had been tidy without being brilliant, and going ahead settled the crowd. That calm lasted exactly three minutes.
In the 37th minute, stand-in captain Micky van de Ven pulled back Ismaila Sarr as the Palace forward broke clear on goal. Referee Andrew Madley had no hesitation in showing a straight red card for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity. Sarr stepped up to take the penalty himself and scored in the 40th minute to make it 1-1.
Palace sensed blood. Jorgen Strand Larsen headed home in first-half added time to put the visitors ahead, and before Spurs could regroup, Sarr struck again to make it 3-1 at the break. The second half was a non-event, with Palace happy to manage the game and Spurs unable to create anything meaningful with ten men.
Five defeats in a row for Tudor's side
This was Tottenham's fifth consecutive defeat and extends their winless run in the league to 11 matches. Igor Tudor, who replaced Thomas Frank as head coach on February 14, is yet to find a formula that stops the slide. The Croatian was brought in to steady the ship, but results have gone the other way.
Spurs sit 16th in the table on 29 points from 28 matches, just four points above the relegation zone. West Ham in 18th have 25 points, and while Tottenham still have games in hand on some of those around them, the direction of travel is alarming.
Palace continue their strong run under Glasner
For Oliver Glasner, this was another satisfying away day. Sarr was superb after coming into the game as a substitute early in the second half, and his pace troubled Spurs all evening once they went down to ten. Strand Larsen's aerial threat gave Palace a different dimension, and the Norwegian's goal was a textbook near-post header from a corner.
Palace are comfortably mid-table and playing with freedom, which is a dangerous combination at this stage of the season. Glasner will leave the club in the summer, but his team are determined to finish the campaign strongly.
What's next
Van de Ven's red card means he misses Spurs' next Premier League fixture against Liverpool, though he remains available for their Champions League meeting with Atletico Madrid. Tudor needs a result from somewhere, and fast. Tottenham's remaining fixtures include several matches against sides around them, but they need to start picking up points before the gap to 18th shrinks any further.
