A scintillating fixture awaited those gathered inside the Tottenham Hotspur stadium, as Spurs came up against a struggling Leicester City.
The Foxes have had a nightmarish start to the season, conceding goals left and right while scoring comparatively less.
In contrast, Spurs have looked rather solid in the Prem so far, despite the football being a bit uninspired at times.
Heading into the game, the Lilywhites were undoubtedly the favourites, but counting out the Foxes is never wise, which became apparent quickly.
Youri Tielemens gave the visitors the lead, albeit a short-lived one, as Harry Kane soon equalized.
Eric Dier earned the lead for Spurs, only for the parity to be restored by an incredible finish from James Maddison.
As the teams came out for the second 45, both had the momentum to build upon, although it quickly became apparent which side intended to do so.
Leicester miserably folded and it all began with a giveaway from Wilfred Ndidi, which was converted swiftly by Bentancur.
What followed was a switch to 3-5-2 by Antonio Conte, with the Italian subbing on Son Heung-Min who looked like a man possessed.
He went to grab a 13-minute hattrick, silencing those pesky critics and re-establishing himself as the South Korean Boogeyman.
Amidst all that unfolded on the pitch, the cameras briefly panned towards 2 very unlikely figures, who ultimately proved to be very significant.
While Leicester’s abysmal defensive record can be pinned on Brendan Rodgers’ aversion to appointing a defending coach, their set-piece simply cannot be excused.
Leicester conceding their second goal from a corner against Spurs.
The Foxes have conceded a whopping 22 goals from set-plays since the start of last season while converting almost none of their own.
Two of Spurs’ goals were from corners, as a result of amateurish defending for the visitors.
In fact, both goals came from different plays, first from a short corner, while the other was more direct.
Leicester almost gave up another due to an evident lack of communication in the box, however, it was waived away by VAR due to a foul on Danny Ward.
Even the unseasoned viewer could’ve spotted a free man, such was the state of Leicester’s miserable mix of man-marking and zonal defending.
Following the game, their set piece coach, Lars Knudsen, went viral online for his substandard work.
In sharp contrast, when the bespectacled mug of Gianni Vio, Knudsen’s Lilywhite counterpart, popped up on the screen, plenty of plaudits were sent his way.
The 69-year-old, previously of SPAL, joined Conte’s staff this season and he has already made a significant impact.
Throughout the entirety of last season, Spurs managed 8 goals from set-plays, in 22/23 they have already scored 5. Talk about instant impact.
The Italian has already become a hero amongst the Tottenham faithful, a status which will hopefully only increase as the season goes on.
Did anyone else hear the commentators day that Gianni Vio is Spurs first ever set piece coach? Are set piece coaches a new thing? How have we been plagued by set piece incompetence for so long and never thought to hire someone??? 🤣🤣🤣 FFS
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