Tottenham's Hesitation Continues After Draw with Leeds
Tottenham’s season of hesitation found a new low on Monday night. A 1-1 home draw with Leeds, on an evening when West Ham’s defeat had opened the door to safety, felt less like a point gained and more like an accusation.
Spurs led. Spurs laboured. Spurs let it slip.
And for Gabby Agbonlahor, watching on, one man embodied the malaise: Richarlison.
Chance missed, questions asked
This was the night Tottenham could have almost dragged themselves clear. West Ham’s loss to Arsenal had left the door ajar; victory over a Leeds side whose survival had already been confirmed would have pushed Spurs four points clear of the Hammers with two games left.
For 25 minutes in the second half, it looked like they might just walk through it.
Mathys Tel, the one bright spark in white, broke the deadlock on 50 minutes, lashing Spurs in front and briefly lifting the gloom. He demanded the ball, drove at defenders, tried to force the game into his own pattern. For a while, Leeds backed off.
Then came the swing.
Tel, from hero to culprit, conceded a penalty with a high boot on Ethan Ampadu. Dominic Calvert-Lewin stepped up in the 74th minute and buried the spot-kick with the conviction Tottenham so badly lack in open play.
From there, the anxiety around the stadium grew. Leeds, who had spent long spells cruising in something close to first gear, suddenly pressed higher, moved quicker, believed more. Spurs retreated.
In stoppage time, they almost paid the full price. Sean Longstaff burst clear, hammered a left-footed strike towards the top corner and looked certain to win it. Antonin Kinsky flung himself across his goal and tipped the ball onto the bar – a stunning save, one that will sit comfortably in any end-of-season montage.
It kept Spurs alive on the night. It did little for the mood.
Agbonlahor’s verdict: “Horrendous”
On talkSPORT the following morning, Agbonlahor did not bother with pleasantries. He went straight for the heart of it – and straight for Richarlison.
“Because watching that game last night, I mean, Richarlison… I’ll put a bet out there,” he said. “He’s the slowest player in the Premier League. I would have a bet with anyone, Richarlison is the slowest player in the Premier League.
“The amount of times he ran through and Joe Rodon, who is not a quick centre-half – straight in – got the ball out of him. Horrendous performance from him.”
It was a brutal assessment of the club’s top scorer this season, but it reflected what many in the stands had seen: runs that went nowhere, duels lost, attacks that fizzled out before they had even begun. On a night when Spurs needed their senior forwards to drag them over the line, their focal point shrank.
Maddison’s return, and a team exposed
Agbonlahor did find one positive. James Maddison, back on the pitch for the first time this season after recovering from the ACL injury he suffered in pre-season, finally returned to the fold.
“They need Maddison. Good to see Maddison come on,” Agbonlahor said, pointing to the roar that greeted the playmaker’s introduction. “You just could tell by that ovation he got, ‘OK,’ he knows, ‘I’ve got to be the man.’
“It wouldn’t surprise me if, maybe not the next game, but the last game of the season, he might be able to start, his club need him.”
The contrast was stark. Maddison, still short of rhythm, immediately wanted the ball, tried to knit moves together, tried to inject some imagination. Around him, too many of his teammates looked short of belief, short of sharpness, or simply short of form.
Agbonlahor’s criticism spread quickly.
Tel, he praised – “Great goal by Tel. He was the only one that was trying to get on the ball and make things happen and get at players.” But others did not escape.
Randal Kolo Muani, a marquee arrival, came under the microscope: “He’s got one goal… one goal, one assist in 27 appearances. This is a French international that will probably go to the World Cup.”
Those numbers, laid bare, tell their own story. A forward signed to transform the attack has become a symbol of its bluntness.
Conor Gallagher, so often a whirlwind of energy at Crystal Palace and Chelsea, looked a different player in Spurs colours, according to Agbonlahor.
“I’m looking at this group of players and I’m like, Conor Gallagher, that isn’t the Conor Gallagher that Spurs thought they were signing. That is not the one that was at Crystal Palace and Chelsea, total different player, defensively, so poor as well.”
For the former Aston Villa striker, the 90 minutes were a slog.
“That was a painful watch,” he admitted. “And at times, Leeds, they were in first gear, stepped it up a bit last 20 and they should have won. Great save by Kinsky, by the way. Wow.”
Relegation fears and a trip to Stamford Bridge
The table sharpens every criticism. The draw leaves Tottenham exposed. If West Ham win away at Newcastle on Sunday, Spurs will drop back into the relegation zone before they even kick a ball at Stamford Bridge next Tuesday.
Chelsea away has never been a gentle assignment for them. Ten years ago, that ground shattered their dream of becoming Premier League champions. Since then, the place has rarely been kind. It is eight years since Spurs last won there, and they have managed just one victory in their last 13 meetings with the Blues in all competitions.
Now they go again, carrying the weight of a season on their shoulders, knowing that another flat, lifeless display like Monday’s could drag them even deeper into trouble.
The ovation for Maddison suggested the fans still believe someone can change the story. The question is whether the rest of this squad – Richarlison included – are ready to run with him, or whether nights like Leeds at home will come to define their year.
