Football 29w1y

Marc Cucurella Slips Twice In Opening Minutes To Gift Tottenham Early Lead Against Chelsea 2g453o

Disclosure
We publish independently audited content meeting strict editorial standards. Ads on our site are served by Google AdSense and are not controlled or influenced by our editorial team.

Two Marc Cucurella slips were responsible for early Tottenham goals as the Chelsea defender lost his footing in the build-up to both of Spurs’ early scores.

The Spanish fullback slipped in possession to gift Tottenham their opening goal after just five minutes.

Brennan Johnson reacted quickest to latch onto the loose ball and deliver a brilliant cross for Dominic Solanke.

Former Bournemouth striker Solanke tucked home the opener to capitalise on Cucurella’s unfortunate error.

But minutes later, the unthinkable happened as he slipped again in a near-identical situation.

This time, Dejan Kulusevski was the beneficiary. The Swedish international cut inside and bent an excellent strike into the far corner to double Tottenham’s advantage.

Marc Cucurella Slips Force Him To Change Boots y14s

Following his second slip in a matter of minutes, an incensed Cucurella raced towards the Chelsea dugout.

A sheepish-looking kit-man handed him another pair of boots, with longer studs in.

Sky Sports commentator Peter Drury compared Cucurella to a certain Disney princess who also had trouble with footwear.

He quipped: “Like Cinderella, Cucurella is looking for a slipper that fits.”

The change in boots seemed to have the desired effect, with no more slips for Cucrella.

Chelsea worked their way back into the first half, and pulled a goal back through on-loan Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho.

He picked up the ball out wide on the left, before driving in-field and unleashing a thunderous low strike into the right-hand corner.

The visitors then began to control possession for the remainder of the first half, and came close to an equaliser on several occaisions.

Cole Palmer miscued from six yards out in an uncharacteristic miss, before Son Heung-Min narrowly missed a chance to restore Tottenham’s two-goal advantage.

With both sides showing tremendous attacking intent, the biggest surprise of the first half was that it remained 2-1 at the break after such a frantic opening 20 minutes.

Author photo
James Chittick
Sports Editor

James is an experienced writer covering a wide range of sports, including Premier League and European football, Rugby Union, WWE and the NFL. Having studied English & Creative Writing at Plymouth University, James completed a master's degree in Digital & Social Media Marketing before pursuing a career in Journalism. He then graduated from News Associates in Manchester after finishing their NCTJ Postgraduate Diploma in Multimedia Sports Journalism. Since then, James spent time writing for GameRant before ing Reach PLC, where he featured regularly in publications such as the Daily Mirror, Football.LDN, Manchester Evening News and Liverpool Echo, as well as dozens of local titles. Now at SportsCasting, James provides expert analysis and detailed research features, as well as covering breaking news stories.

Get to know James Chittick better
Author photo
James Chittick Sports Editor

James is an experienced writer covering a wide range of sports, including Premier League and European football, Rugby Union, WWE and the NFL. Having studied English & Creative Writing at Plymouth University, James completed a master's degree in Digital & Social Media Marketing before pursuing a career in Journalism. He then graduated from News Associates in Manchester after finishing their NCTJ Postgraduate Diploma in Multimedia Sports Journalism. Since then, James spent time writing for GameRant before ing Reach PLC, where he featured regularly in publications such as the Daily Mirror, Football.LDN, Manchester Evening News and Liverpool Echo, as well as dozens of local titles. Now at SportsCasting, James provides expert analysis and detailed research features, as well as covering breaking news stories.

All posts by James Chittick