This evening’s London derby between Brentford and Tottenham featured five debutants, including the 100-million-pound man Sandro Tonali.
The opening 20 minutes saw waves of attacks from Brentford, which tested Spurs’ debutants Jean-Paul Van Hecke, Marcos Senesi, and Andy Robertson.
However, Brentford’s £38 million signing Mamadou Sangaré was the first to create something of note with an incisive assist to lift the home crowd off their feet in the 11th minute.
The Malian midfielder was off to a bright start, dominating challenges and breaking lines with his passing range.
Sandro Tonali of Tottenham, on the other hand, had a torrid opening half hour, with a wayward shot wide of the post, losing the ball three times and a volley ballooned over the bar.
The afternoon only got worse for Tottenham as Brentford’s confidence grew into the match.
Brentford’s new midfielder was the best debutant in all aspects: composure, creativity and ball retention, with 21 accurate passes.
Following his introduction into the second half, Mateus Fernandes immediately carved open a golden opportunity for Mikey Moore, which proved fruitless.
Debutant Robertson whipped a ball to the back post, splitting the Bees’ backline, only for Mikey Moore to squander the golden opportunity.
Sangaré throughout the match was putting out fires and progressing out from the back, and even grabbed himself a chant: “All I need is Sangaré, a Sangaré who loves me.”
The Bees midfielder hammered a shot following a Brentford corner which was parried, leading to the third goal.
Tottenham’s new midfield talisman Sandro Tonali improved as the game progressed with a clear desire to drag his team nearer to Brentford’s goal, moving the ball around, leading to a 91% pass accuracy for the Italian.
In the 76th minute, Sangaré was taken off, receiving a thunderous round of applause for his industrious performance, with 25 accurate passes and two shots created from his array of passing.
Spurs’ debutant Senesi finished the match with ⅘ of his tackles won and an 80% tackle success rate, partnered with some impressive passing down the flank from Van Hecke, who got himself a 95% passing accuracy.
Despite the Lilywhites spending over 200 million this summer, Sangare was dominant in the opening fixture and earned himself the player of the match award, with manager Keith Andrews describing him: “a credit to the club for signing him.”
Alexandros Ioannides
