Tottenham defeated 10-man Crystal Palace 2-0 at home to record a third straight win and maintain the pressure on Eagles boss Pierre Sage, with his side dropping into the relegation zone. Jean-Philippe Mateta's 13th-minute red card was followed just 12 minutes later by Archie Gray's headed opener at a corner. Jan Paul van Hecke's scrappy second-half rebound finish then settled the game to give Spurs three consecutive league wins for the first time since February 2025 and move Roberto De Zerbi's side up to eighth.
But Palace's third league loss in a row, which leaves them third-bottom, came after Mateta was sent off for a late studs-up sliding tackle on Micky van de Ven's Achilles. Referee Michael Oliver had originally shown a yellow card to the Palace striker, but VAR sent Oliver to the monitor, and he changed his decision to a red for serious foul play. Not only did the straight red card lead to Palace's defeat, but it leaves them without Mateta for their next three Premier League games - a run which could be crucial in deciding Sage's future as they face Liverpool, Coventry and Hull.
Palace showed plenty of fight and grit for the under-pressure Frenchman at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as Spurs struggled to find a second goal to make the win safe. But Van Hecke's bundled finish brought relief to the Spurs faithful, who saw their side win back-to-back home league games for the first time since November 2024.
Source: Sky Sports Champions League · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing