Tottenham Hotspur defeated Crystal Palace 1-0 on Sunday.
Tottenham Hotspur defender Davinson Sanchez was arguably the best player on the park as he played a key role during his side’s 1-0 London derby victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
The Colombian centre-back joined Spurs in the summer for a fee in the region of £40 million.
Despite the heavy outlay, many expected the 21-year-old would play a backup role in his debut season in North London, especially considering the previous success of Belgian duo Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld.
But a change in system at the beginning of the season accelerated Sanchez’s involvement in the first-team, and it has not taken long for the central defender to soon become a fan favourite and a potential Premier League standout.
Top scorer Harry Kane struck late for Spurs and deservedly received the plaudits for another match-winning moment, but it was Sanchez who was arguably the outstanding performer for Mauricio Pochettino’s side.
| Tackles | Interceptions | Effective Clearances | Duels Won | Ball Recoveries | Pass-accuracy | Mins Played | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Davinson Sánchez | 1 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 4 | 93.6% | 90 |
As shown the table provided by Opta, the former Ajax defender contributed greatly in several key areas and it was quite telling that Palace’s record signing Christian Benteke finished the game without a single shot on goal.
The Eagles have improved immensely under Roy Hodgson, yet against Spurs they looked toothless in the final third and found no way of penetrating the visitors’ impressive defensive shape, but that might have had something to do with the absence of Wilfried Zaha…
Sanchez was coolness personified, racking up four ball recoveries, seven effective clearances and eight duels won, while also posting a 93.6% pass accuracy – the best of any outfield player who featured for more than 15 minutes.
Speculation over Alderweireld’s future has been rife with reports in the Daily Mail that Barcelona could come in for him, but with Sanchez impressing in such fashion perhaps he would not be such a great miss after all.
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