The Australian’s team took the lead in the 38th minute through captain Son, who is continuing to thrive with his new-found goalscoring responsibilities. The South Korean received the ball on the edge of the box before managing to work the ball onto his favoured right foot and curling a superb strike to set the tone on the night.
Maddison then grabbed his first goal at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium just moments after the half-time break, coolly slotting home from close range after a threaded pass from Son to put the game to bed. Postecoglou will take plenty of positives from the display, Express Sport takes a look at five things learned from the convincing display by the table-toppers…
Tottenham’s new unstoppable partnership
Gone are the days of Son and Harry Kane. Instead, Spurs’ new-found duo of Son and Maddison possess arguably even more pizzazz, creativity and excitement. The pair have linked up sensationally since the latter was signed from Leicester City and are now the crux of Postecoglou’s system, appearing to have a telepathic relationship that is proving somewhat unstoppable at present.
Balanced backline
Plenty of Tottenham’s success will be credited to their attacking class, but those stars are able to go about their business knowing that they have a safety net of a top-quality defence to build off of. Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven have formed a rock-solid partnership, allowing both Pedro Porro and Destiny Udogie to drift inside and create overloads centrally.
Hjojberg may force a rethink
Despite reports heavily linking Hjojberg with a move away from Tottenham, the Denmark international showed that he has plenty to offer against Fulham. The ex-Southampton star quickly moved the ball forward in midfield and showed a willingness to receive the ball in dangerous positions. Hojbjerg is one of the most experienced heads in the Spurs changing room and the 28-year-old and was often seen orchestrating play from afar, and he could prove useful depending on the extent of Sarr’s injury.
Missing the threat of Bissouma
Although Spurs impressed on Monday night, the absence of Yves Bissouma was clear to see. The Mali midfielder has been reborn under Postecoglou, with the new system making use of his ability to retrieve possession deep in his own half and driving the ball into the final third. With the midfield duo of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Pape Sarr, there was a lack of a ball carrier and consequently Spurs’ chances largely came from the ball being played out wide rather than there being the usual variety.
Night to forget for Bassey
Fulham defender Calvin Bassey will quickly need to forget about his display against Spurs if he is to return to form for his side’s trip to Brighton at the weekend. The Nigeria international gave away possession in dangerous areas for both of Tottenham’s goals and he was ultimately punished. Bassey never truly looked comfortable in possession and made several other errors that prevented his side from building out from defence as Marco Silva desired.