Kyle Naughton Performance Report

Kyle Naughton Performance Report

Opponents: Partizan Belgrade
Competition: UEFA Europa League
Venue: Partizan Stadium, Belgrade, Serbia (UEFA Category 3 Stadium)



Kyle Naughton had a decent game on his return, he got forward but frequently didn't receive the ball, he however covered his defensive position well. It was one of those performances that you perhaps don't notice.

First-half

7 mins Naughton overlapped but the through ball from Paulinho was too slow to put him in.

12 mins Naughton goes down the right to the byline and crosses towards Kane but the ball is cleared.

18 mins Partizan Belgrade have a free-kick on the left taken by Drincic which Naughton heads away.

22 mins A good chip puts Naughton in behind the defence again but his cross loops over Harry Kane at the back post.

25 mins Pantic turns down the left side to beat Naughton but Townsend is there to dispossess him knocking it out for a throw. The ball is thrown long into the box and Fazio darts in front of his man but misses the leaving Lazovic unmarked. Vertonghen lunges in front of him as he turns and shoots from six yards. Lloris is forced to make an excellent block and Bentaleb lunges in a sliding tackle to hook the ball clear.

43 mins After Townsend had collected a pass and turned in space with 10 yards in front of him he inexplicably ran sideways instead and passed backwards. While Townsend then runs into Aaron Lennon the ball moves to Naughton who crosses from the right. It takes a deflection however and loops comfortable in the air for the keeper to easily catch the ball.

Half-time: Naughton has had a good first half supporting the attack and getting down the right frequently. He has got in behind the defence twice and but for a poor pass could have been through in a dangerous area. He has only been slipped past once in defence and has been solid.

Second-half

67 mins A through ball from Branko Ilic puts Lazovic through but he delays his shot and Naughton gets across to put in a tackle that the ref awards a corner for even though it should be a goal kick. The corner is cleared easily.

While Partizan Belgrade had a sustained spell of pressure at the beginning of the second-half Naughton didn't really have to do anything of note. he did his defending well and they were rarely a threat from his area. He also kept getting up the field well to offer support to our attacks and provide width when he could. He had one of those good games where he is efficient and you don't notice him.

Twitter reaction

e-Spurs ‏@e_spurs
Always going to be hard but we have too many average players in B team. Townsend, Paulinho, Lennon, Kane, Naughton, Bentaleb - non-existent

e-Spurs USA ‏@e_spurs_usa
Fazio, Verts, Naughton, Bentaleb, Stambouli have all looked very good to me

Kyle Henchie ‏@Kyle_Henchie_
Since when did Naughton become actually quite good?

Nikhil Saglani ‏@Nikhil_Saglani  4h
No longer feel uncomfortable having Naughton at RB but can't wait for Walker to get back. Far superior.

---