There were plenty of Tottenham Hotspur players who looked back to their best against Newcastle United yesterday including defender Ben Davies.
The Welsh international took to social media to celebrate a much-needed win for Ange Postecoglou’s side.
Both teams went into the match with injury-ravaged squads and it was immediately clear that Eddie Howe’s lack of rotation was going to cause some issues.
While Newcastle’s starting line-up didn’t look too weakened, he was only able to welcome back a few first-team players to the bench who were far from match-fit.
On the other hand, the Spurs line-up looked the closest it’s been to full strength since the disastrous Chelsea result.
Postecoglou was able to re-introduce Pape Matar Sarr and Richarlison to the starting XI after their defeat to West Ham.
The balance of the team immediately looked better and the Brazilian forward scored a much-needed brace, although Son Heung-min’s performance alongside him really caught the eye.
Ben Davies and his Tottenham teammates nearly kept a clean sheet were it not for an injury-time goal from Newcastle midfield Joelinton.
That will be a point of disappointment and there will be concerns about Cristian Romero’s conduct late in the game, but otherwise, Spurs looked so much closer to their very best.
Davies elated with Tottenham win over Newcastle
Posting on Instagram after the match, Davies said: “Big Result. Exactly what we needed! #COYS”
Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario replied: “Beast,” while Fraser Forster thought the £80,000-a-week defender was on fire.
It will be interesting to see just how much of a role Davies ends up playing under Postecoglou this season.
The Australian will be desperate to have Micky Van de Ven back as he looked unbelievable before picking up a hamstring injury against Chelsea.
The Welsh international can also deputise for Destiny Udogie at left-back, but the youngster has been fantastic this season.
He scored the opening goal last night but his defensive work against Miguel Almiron has to be praised as well.
Davies and his Tottenham teammates will know that they need to build on the momentum they’ve created against Newcastle now.
That’s been a problem for Spurs in recent years where they’ve not capitalised on positive results for a sustained period of time.
Postecoglou has shown he could be the man to change that judging by their table-topping form at the start of the campaign.
Davies offers Spurs fantastic rotation option
Yesterday’s fixture won’t be the toughest Tottenham face, but Davies and Romero performed very well in the centre of defence against Newcastle.
The experienced defender denied Alexander Isak a certain goal by getting a toe on a dangerous cross in the first half.
The 30-year-old made three more clearances to add to that vital one throughout the match as well as one interception and one tackle.
He won all but one of his seven duels throughout the match and completed 57 passes, typically giving the ball to either Udogie or Yves Bissouma to advance the ball forward.
Davies doesn’t possess Van de Ven’s recovery pace but his experience means he reads the game slightly better than the Dutchman.
It’s an area of Van de Ven’s game that needs improving as he’s typically relied on his speed to bail him out when he reacts slowly to attacks.
That will come with age, but right now, Davies is acting as an able deputy while he recovers from injury.
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