Tottenham player ratings vs Aston Villa: 4/10 lets Spurs down as trio need to improve

Tottenham Hotspur threw away a first-half lead against Aston Villa, as Tottenham Hotspur suffered their second home defeat of the season. It's the first time under the stewardship of Frank that Spurs have lost from a winning position, with the north Londoners struggling at times throughout the second half.

got off to the perfect start for Spurs, with the hosts taking the lead after just five minutes through Rodrigo Bentancur, who had been picked out in the box by a clever Joao Palhinha knockdown. An offside flag denied Tottenham a second moments later, but against the run of play, it was Villa who found the game's second goal. Having fielded criticisms about his club vs international form, Morgan Rogers put a long-overdue smile on the face of the Villa faithful with a thumping strike from range to level things up at 1-1.

Despite the promise of the opening minutes, the game began to drift away from Spurs in the second half and by the time the Villa second arrived, there could be few complaints by the Europa League winners. A stand-offish backline allowed space for Lucas Digne, who picked out Emi Buendía in the penalty area, with the substitute doing the rest. Express Sport hand out player ratings following the Sunday afternoon clash.

Guglielmo Vicario - 6

Didn't have much to do throughout the match and certainly wasn't to blame for the Rogers goal that cannoned into the top corner. Possibly unsighted for the second Villa goal, but again, couldn't do an awful lot about it.

Pedro Porro - 5

Known for his offensive output, but it just wasn't there on a day when Spurs needed it desperately. A bad day at the office for the ex-Sporting CP ace.

Kevin Danso - 6

Came in late after Christian Romero picked up an injury in the warm-up and held his own for most of the contest. There were moments of shakiness but overall it was a solid outing, especially given the circumstances surrounding his inclusion in the team.

Micky van de Ven - 6

Possibly could've closed down the Villa attacker sooner in the build-up to the winning goal, but was generally solid throughout the match.

Djed Spence - 5

All over the place for the Buendia goal, which wasn't helped by the lack of cover from the left winger just ahead of him. Even still, the English international looked a little jaded and had a difficult afternoon on the left-hand side of Spurs' defence.

Joao Palhinha - 7

Bossed the first half and was rightly rewarded with a clever header in the build-up to Spurs' opening goal. Saw much less of the ball in the second half, but the midfielder was just as impressive with his work going the opposite way.

Rodrigo Bentancur - 6

Took his goal spectacularly well and was among the best players on the pitch in the first half. Unlike his midfield partner, the Uruguayan ghosted at times in the second half and struggled to keep up with the pace of Villa's midfield, who managed the game much better.

Xavi Simons - 4

Bitterly disappointing performance from a player who should be delivering much more. Failed to influence the match and probably could've been taken off earlier than he was. It's still very early days for the Dutchman, but for the money Spurs spent, they'll be expecting much more in the future.

Mohammed Kudus - 8

Dazzled at times for the home side and continues to prove himself as one of the signings of the season. Put the cross in that eventually led to the Bentancur goal, and was a marginal offside away from getting his own name on the scoresheet.

Mathys Tel - 5

Far too easy to defend against and wasn't alive to the half-chances that popped up on occasion inside the penalty area. Ought to have thrown his body at a cross before the break, but the youngster was caught on his heels and could only watch as the ball flashed by. Hooked on the hour mark.

Wilson Odobert - 5

Plenty of trickery but not much to show for it. Caught ball watching at times too, with Villa right-back Matty Cash enjoying plenty of space on the right-hand side.

Substitutes:

Richarlison - 6

Brought on to inject some life into the Spurs attack, but was just another Tottenham attacker that didn't do much during his time on the pitch.

Lucas Bergvall - 6

Certainly did his best to liven things up after coming off the bench, with the teenager's energy a welcome addition.

Randal Kolo Muani - 5

Had one chance and fluffed his lines. Granted, it wasn't exactly a sitter, but a player of his quality ought to be making a connection with a dropping ball inside the penalty area. Instead, the Frenchman swung and miss - much to the frustration of the Spurs faithful.

Brennan Johnson - N/A

Pape Matar Sarr - N/A