Five... huge moments against Manchester City
Thu 02 February 2023, 18:15|
Tottenham Hotspur
We’ve been blessed with some memorable moments against Manchester City over the years.
Here are five of the best, and this list doesn’t include the likes of Heung-Min Son’s winner at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on the opening day of last season, Stevie Bergwijn’s debut stunner in 2020/21, Eric Dier’s goal to turn around a 1-0 deficit into a 4-1 win in 2015/16 or Pep Guardiola’s first Premier League defeat in 2016/17.
‘And still Ricky Villa’
Ricky Villa - Spurs 3-2 City - FA Cup Final replay - 14.05.1981
One of the great FA Cup goals, stories and a seminal moment for the Club, a moment the man who lifted the trophy, legendary former skipper Steve Perryman, felt put us back on the world stage.
Ricky joined us with Ossie Ardiles after helping Argentina win the World Cup in 1978 and, three years later, stepped out against City at Wembley, having helped us reach the final with an absolute rocket in the semi-final replay against Wolves at Highbury a month earlier.
But the first chapter of the story didn’t go to Ricky’s script. He was substituted after 68 minutes and dejectedly trudged around Wembley’s greyhound track back to the dressing room. That game ended 1-1, manager Keith Burkinshaw kept the faith and Ricky delivered in style in the replay on the Thursday night.
With the game on tenterhooks at 2-2 - Ricky had opened the scoring, City hit back to lead 2-1, Garth Crooks levelled - Graham Roberts won possession and fed Tony Galvin, who took us 70 yards up the pitch. He rolled the ball square to Ricky, 30 yards out. Ricky drove into the box, turned Ran Ranson and Tommy Caton inside out and just as Caton and goalkeeper Joe Corrigan converged on him, fired home from eight yards.
Later voted Wembley’s best goal of the 20th century, Ricky’s place in Spurs and football folklore was cemented, and Ossie’s Dream was a reality!
Steed takes us a step nearer Wembley
Steed Malbranque - City 0-2 Spurs - League Cup, quarter-final - 18.12.2007
Everyone remembers the final and particularly the second leg of the semi-final on our way to winning the League Cup in 2008, but what about the quarter-final?
City had won 10 straight at the Etihad, underlining the quality of this display - where we dealt with being down to 10 men for fully 70 minutes, and then scored a superb goal on the counter to secure victory.
Jermain Defoe got the ball rolling with a trademark finish from Aaron Lennon’s cross on five minutes, but the game took a turn for the worse when Didier Zokora received a straight red card for challenge on Elano just 20 minutes in. We defended stoutly, Paul Robinson denied Darius Vassell and Rolando Bianchi in the second half before the clinching goal from Steed Malbranque.
Dimitar Berbatov did brilliantly to hold onto the ball deep before finding Jamie O’Hara on the left. O’Hara spotted Malbranque’s run through the middle, found him with a pinpoint pass and the Frenchman did the rest, controlling the raking pass, turning inside Richard Dunne and clipping past Joe Hart.
We famously beat Arsenal 5-1 in the semi-final, second leg before coming from behind to beat Chelsea to lift the trophy at Wembley thanks to Berbatov’s penalty and Jonathan Woodgate’s extra time winner.
Crouchy clinches Champions League for the first time
Peter Crouch - City 0-1 Spurs - Premier League - 05.05.2010
Two games to go in 2009/10, and a place in the Champions League was in our hands. Victory over City on a Thursday night at the Etihad would do it. Defeat would hand the initiative to City.
We saved one of our best performances for that tense night in Manchester. Described by the BBC as the ‘vastly superior side’ on the night, Crouchy hit the post and was denied by goalkeeper Marton Fulop, the ex-Spur who sadly passed away in 2015, who then saved from Jermain Defoe. Ledley King also had a goal disallowed.
The moment arrived eight minutes from time. Younes Kaboul bundled past Craig Bellamy on the right, and Fulop could only parry his cross into the path of Crouch, who nodded into the top corner. Cue absolute scenes in the away end.
We’d go on to reach the quarter-finals in our first Champions League campaign the following season, 2010/11, scoring 18 goals in the group stage and beating Milan before bowing out to Real Madrid.
Watch Crouchy's goal at City
Sonny’s delight
Heung-Min Son - Spurs 1-0 City; City 4-3 Spurs - Champions League - 09/17.04.2019
Okay, we’re cheating a little here, but how can you choose between these incredible quarter-final legs of the Champions League in 2019?
First up, Sonny struck the only goal of the first leg - the first European goal at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium - and Hugo Lloris denied Sergio Aguero from the penalty spot to ensure we took a narrow 1-0 lead to Manchester.
The following week produced one of the all-time great matches. City wiped out our lead early, but Sonny struck twice in three minutes to lead 3-1 on aggregate, with two away goals. City came roaring back to go 3-2 up with only 21 minutes on the clock, and then took the aggregate lead when Aguero fired home for 4-2 on 59 minutes.
We looked down and out, only for substitute Fernando Llorente to bundle home Kieran Trippier’s corner for 4-3 on the night, 4-4 on aggregate - and we were through on away goals... but not without one last fright. Raheem Sterling fired home in added time, only for the ‘goal’ to be chalked off for offside by VAR. What a night, soon to repeated for drama at Ajax as we reached the final for the first time in Madrid.
Special - 'March to Madrid' with Sonny
Harry at his best
Harry Kane - City 2-3 Spurs - Premier League - 19.02.2022
While this wasn’t the turning point for our late surge to fourth place last season - don’t forget, we lost to Burnley four days later - it was a catalyst for the belief that took us back into the Champions League.
At the centre of it all, Harry Kane, who delivered a virtuoso display, helping set up the first, put on a plate by Heung-Min Son for Dejan Kulusevski and scoring twice, the second a dramatic winner in the fifth minute of added time after Riyad Mahrez levelled from the penalty spot a matter of minutes earlier.
We picked ourselves up after Burnley to produce a similar performance to beat Leeds 4-0 at Elland Road on 26 February and the final sprint was on – we won 10 of our last 14 matches in the Premier League, scoring 38 goals in the process, and a huge victory against Arsenal in May, followed by wins against Burnley and Norwich, saw us home.
