Premier League, Nottingham Forest go third with Tottenham scalp: Stats
Tottenham Hotspur's Premier League struggles continued with defeat against an in-form Nottingham Forest in matchweek 18 on Thursday. The Boxing Day clash saw Forest go up to third in the Premier League. This was their fourth straight league win which include victories against Manchester United, Aston Villa and Brentford. For Spurs, this was another sorry outing as they continue to suffer this season.
A look at the points table
Forest are third for the mean time as they went ahead of Arsenal. Forest own 34 points from 18 matches, sealing their 10th win of the season (D4, L4). On the other hand, Spurs remain 11th with their ninth loss this season (W7 D2). They have suffered four losses in their last five league games (W1).
Here are the match stats
The hosts had three shots on target compared to Spurs' four. Forest had 1.21 expected goals with Spurs managing 1.28. The visitors had 31 touches in the opposition box with Forest clocking 18. Spurs had 70% ball possession.
Elanga scores for Forest in disciplined win
Anthony Elanga scored the only goal of the contest. Brennan Johnson, who returned to the City Ground, went closest for the visitors. However, goalkeeper Matz Sels denied his shot. For Forest, they looked well drilled and disciplined.They allowed Spurs to keep the ball and were a threat on the counter. There was space in behind with Tottenham playing a high line.
A rare loss for Spurs on Boxing Day
As per Opta, Tottenham have lost on Boxing Day for the first time since 2003 when they lost 2-0 to Portsmouth, ending a 16-game unbeaten streak on December 26 (W12 D4). Meanwhile, Forest won a consecutive clash on Boxing Day, beating Newcastle United last season.
