Burnley down . . . but not out
Kompany ‘excited’ for next chapter after Spurs end slim survival hopes
THE Northern Lights have gone out for Vincent Kompany. His Burnley team plunge once more out of the Premier League, ultimately relegated by a late goal at Tottenham but moreover punished for taking too long to settle on a way to compete at this level.
Kompany led the Clarets out of the Championship in style with 101 points last year, transformed the promotion team with a swathe of signings and found no rhythm until the last two months.
They have felt aggrieved at times. On the wrong end of some rough decisions, but all the way through the season they have been painfully fragile at the back with a suicidal devotion to some of the most intricate passing patterns in deep defensive areas.
Kompany remained defiant. ‘No sulking, no moaning, we get on with it,’ he said. ‘Tomorrow is going to be an exciting day no matter what. Tomorrow is Day One of us being successful again. Day One of next season for me.’
Burnley’s last glimmer was extinguished by Micky van de Ven, the star of the season for Spurs, who started the game with an armful of player-of-the-year silverware and finished it as an emergency left-back, from where he charged forward to score a late winner.
It brought an element of relief for Ange Postecoglou after four defeats in a row and keeps alive their slim chances of reaching the top four. Spurs have two games to play, starting at home against Manchester City.
‘We’ve still got six points to play for and we’ll see where we end up,’ said Postecoglou. ‘Today was important for the supporters. When you lose four, irrespective of the circumstances and the opposition, it can weigh on the minds of the players and dent confidence. I thought they handled it well. We probably should have won the game more comfortably.’
Burnley took the lead midway through the first half, with a goal on the break created by Sander Berge and finished by Jacob Bruun Larsen. Berge evaded three tackles before releasing Bruun Larsen into the space behind Oliver Skipp, who started at left-back.
Guglielmo Vicario had already made one fine save, turning over a header from Vitinho in the fifth minute, but had no chance on this occasion. Spurs have not kept a clean sheet in 14 Premier League home games. This leaky sequence stretches back to October, when they beat Fulham 2-0, but they can usually be relied upon to score goals and were soon level.
Pedro Porro picked up a short pass inside from Brennan Johnson, sped into the penalty area and unleashed a fierce shot which beat Arijanet Muric at his near post.
Loose play under intense pressure meant chances were in abundance. Muric and his defenders were seldom far from mistakes in possession. Johnson pounced on one careless pass from the goalkeeper but could not finish, dragging a shot wide.
Bruun Larsen was a constant threat in the first half but proved far less influential when Burnley’s chances became increasingly rare in the second.
Wilson Odobert saw a shot clip Cristian Romero and deflect over, and Maxime Esteve looped a header over from a recycled corner, but Tottenham dominated the second half.
Most of the activity surrounded Muric, who rode his luck and produced some excellent saves. One from Dejan Kulusevski after a misplaced pass by Jose Cullen. Another to foil what would have been a wonderful solo goal by James Maddision.
Perhaps the best to frustrate Pape Matar Sarr before Van de Ven found a way through with a precise low shot from just inside the penalty area. It marked the end of Burnley’s resistance.
Their demise was summed up by a bizarre incident in the closing minutes. Lorenz Assignon dashed forward from right-back and fell over in desperation, claiming a penalty. He had tripped himself up and no matter how much he rolled around in pretend agony, the officials were not fooled.
Nor were the Burnley fans. They cheered Dara O’Shea as he sprinted forward from central defence to tell Assignon to get up because they needed to score and the seconds were ticking away.
Referee Jarred Gillett showed yellow cards to Assignon for the dive and to Kompany for his protests on the touchline. In truth, it was not an edifying display by either of them.
‘Every game is a lesson,’ said the Burnley boss.
‘The biggest thing is to keep energy high. We were 21st in England last season. Now we’re 19th. Hopefully, we can be 21st or 22nd next season and the goal is to shoot out of that middle. The club are alive and ambitious.’
SPURS (4-3-3): Vicario 7; Porro 8, Romero 7, VAN DE VEN 8.5,
Skipp 5.5 (Dragusin 75min, 6.5); Sarr 7 (Hojbjerg 88), Bissouma 6 (Bentancur 75, 6.5), Maddison 6.5 (Lo Celso 88); Johnson 7, Son 6, Kulusevski 5.5 (Scarlett 75, 6). Booked: Maddison, Skipp, Sarr. Manager: Ange Postecoglou 6.5.
BURNLEY (4-4-2): Muric 6.5; Assignon 5.5, O’Shea 7, Esteve 6.5, Taylor 5; Larsen 6 (Tresor 81), Cullen 6 (Amdouni 88), Berge 6.5, Vitinho 5 (Benson 72, 5); Odobert 5, Foster 5 (Fofana 87). Booked: Cullen, Berge, Larsen, Assignon, Kompany.
Manager: Vincent Kompany 6.
Referee: Jarred Gillett 6.