One. Steven Bergwijn (our hero) gets subbed on at the 79’ minute. At the 90+4’, when the game seems completely out of hand, he takes a dive in the box. I applaud the effort I guess. We needed to pull a point out of the jaws of misery, but it is weak shit. Çağlar Söyüncü (our villain) stands over top of Steven and lets him have it verbally over the dive, rightfully so. Bergwijn comes up quick with a push. Söyüncü, the big scary defender who was just giving Stevie an ear full, falls to the ground like a dump truck backed up into him. The hypocrisy is incredible and the karma debt he incurs is astronomical. Bergwijn gets a yellow and defeat seems inevitable.
Two. These are the little things, so we will skip past the first Bergwijn goal. The seconds after Bergwijn attempts to rush in and snag the ball to reset play. Schmeichel (the goalie) boxes him out, he decides it isn’t worth it, and takes off to celebrate. Kane however is more determined, wriggles past Schmeichel and scopes up the ball to run off. Side note: I don’t understand the rules on this, it seemingly happens in every soccer game at every level. Presumably the referee is going to tack on extra time for any late goal to account for the time it takes to reset, right? The opposing team can walk back to kick off as slow as they like, no? Does the ball being back at the spot start the clock on Leicester delaying the game? In any case Schmeichel grabs Kane’s leg from behind to try and trip him up as he runs off (seen above). If Kane falls is it a yellow? Does any of the post goal sparing between teams in late games really matter?
Three. Söyüncü (our villain), who can see the light at the end of the tunnel, is slapped down by the Gods. Not once, but thrice. In the first goal, not the Bergwijn one, but Kane’s first way back at 38’, he gets his legs straight cracked and can only watch in disgrace as the ball goes in. In the second he gets lost in the sauce covering Doherty and is spinning like a top when Bergwijn scores to tie. In the final goal, he is covering Bergwijn, an assignment that should be meaningless given the time that is left. But when Tielemans unexplainably gives the ball away at kickoff he is already behind when the pass from Kane comes in. The final insult to injury finds him sprawled on the ground smacking at the ball as if it were the core of his woe. I LOVE IT!!!
Four. In the throes of victory Bergwijn sprints toward the Spurs supporters, clears the fence, and roars in triumph. Fans attempt to push past security to join him while his teammates catch up to celebrate. In the swirl of players, fans, and security that ensues Lucas Moura (I think) pulls the hat off a fans head and throws it to the ground. But why? I don’t imagine that if one were to follow up with him even ten minutes later he could explain. His response might be that of a two year old caught in the act of trying to flush a toothbrush. Shoulders raised, elbows bent, open palms to the sky. “I don’t know”. Did the fan get his hat back? I hope so. I love a good hat.
Five. Bergwijn is still inconsistent, but might have played his way out of a rumored Ajax transfer. Just kidding, that isn’t a little thing, that’s a sport writers take, not a petty fan who wants to revel in this moment. No, instead lets talk Conte. He has yet to lose a game since joining as Spurs manager. I am already bought in on him in a way that haven’t since Pochettino. But I want to focus on this specific game and one specific attribute. The man celebrates the ups and downs of the game like my father. Unbridled joy when the team scores and impassioned rage when they screw up. It is all emotion, it is 100% on display, and I completely respect it. He is seen above dashing madly towards the first person he can hug, cheer, and shout at. I have seen my own father in this exact same motion, frame for frame, when he sees his grandkids (my kids) score goals.