Tottenham 2-1 Southampton: Player ratings as Ryan Mason win first game in charge
By Ross Jackson
Ryan Mason recorded his first win as Tottenham boss as Son Heung-min's late penalty secured a 2-1 victory over Southampton on Wednesday evening.
The Saints took the lead thanks to Danny Ings as the England forward's movement in the box outfoxed Serge Aurier and he glanced a superb header past Hugo Lloris and into the far corner.
The visitors looked good value for their lead though they were pegged back with an hour gone as Bale struck against his old club with a fantastic left-footed curling effort into the far corner.
The goal seemed to spark Spurs into life and they looked to have grabbed their second of the evening with 15 minutes to play, though Son's effort was ruled out after Lucas Moura was adjudged to be offside as Son swept home.
The game looked to be heading for a draw, though Moussa Djenepo conceded a penalty with just minutes to play and Son stepped up to fire the ball home.
That's the match highlights out of the way, now to those Spurs and Saints player ratings...
TOTTENHAM PLAYER RATINGS
1. Goalkeeper & defenders
Hugo Lloris (GK) - 6/10 - Fantastic double save in the first two minutes to stop his side falling behind early on. Given very little to do after picking Ings' header out of the back of the net.
Serge Aurier (RB) - 5/10 - Caught out by the movement of Ings in the buildup to the Saints opener. Showed a willingness to get forward but wasn't picked out by his teammates.
Eric Dier (CB) - 5/10 - Not given a whole lot of defending to do on the evening but did struggle with the movement of Ings on the few occasions Southampton flooded forward.
Toby Alderweireld (CB) - 6/10 - Comfortable in possession but had a number of opportunities to move into midfield which he didn't take.
Sergio Reguilon (LB) - 7/10 - Super cutback for Son whose goal was disallowed for offside. Continued to surge forward and always looked a likely avenue of success.
2. Midfielders
Tanguy Ndombele (CM) - 6/10 - Was busy enough without doing anything particularly outstanding. Withdrawn with 20 minutes to play with Sunday's cup final in mind.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (CM) - 6/10 - Did the basics as he broke up play and kept things ticking over, but very little else.
Giovani Lo Celso (CM) - 8/10 - The best player on the pitch. Looked lively in the midfield and had the composure and the class to wriggle away from his man and open up the game.
3. Forward
Gareth Bale (RW) - 7/10 - Came back to haunt his old side yet again with a wonderful effort to level the game. Showed glimpses of class and always looked the most likely of the Spurs frontline to make something happen.
Lucas Moura (ST) - 5/10 - Tasked with playing down the middle and didn't really know what to make of the position. Neither led the line nor dropped into pockets of space to link up play.
Son Heung-min (LW) - 6/10 - Looked like a man who was running on empty for much of the game though he did show good composure to slot his penalty home.
4. Substitutes
Harry Winks (CM) - 6/10
Erik Lamela (LW) - 6/10
Steven Bergwijn (RW) - N/A
SOUTHAMPTON PLAYER RATINGS
5. Goalkeeper & defenders
Alex McCarthy (GK) - 6/10 - Absolutely nothing he could do about Bale's equaliser or Son's penalty but looked steady for most of the night.
Kyle Walker-Peters (RB) - 6/10 - Was given the runaround by Bale at times but also offered a lot going forward. A tricky night but one he can definitely learn from.
Jan Bednarek (CB) - 7/10 - Produced some brilliant blocks and interceptions as the Saints looked to hang onto their lead but nothing he could do as Spurs eventually found their way through.
Jannik Vestergaard (CB) - 7/10 - Won some towering headers in the centre of the box as Spurs started to apply to the pressure late on. Some nice distribution to the frontline.
Mohammed Salisu (LB) - 7/10 - Did a very good job at left-back and made a couple of vital interceptions at the back post with Bale breathing down his neck.
6. Midfielders
Theo Walcott (RM) - 6/10 - Clearly had the pace to cause the Spurs backline problems but just wasn't released by his teammates and was eventually brought off with 25 minutes to play.
Stuart Armstrong (CM) - 5/10 - Found himself chasing shadows at times in the midfield and was outclassed for much of the game.
James Ward-Prowse (CM) - 6/10 - Lovely delivery for Ings' opener and was as combative and energetic as ever.
Nathan Tella (LM) - 7/10 - Very lively when he was on the ball but didn't see enough of the game to really make an impact.
7. Forward
Che Adams (ST) - 5/10 - Should have opened the scoring after two minutes but fired straight at Lloris.
Danny Ings (ST) - 7/10 - Superb movement to hand his side the lead. Picked up an injury in the second half so had to withdraw but was very impressive when on the pitch.
8. Substitutes
Ibrahima Diallo (CM) - 7/10
Moussa Djenepo (RW) - 5/10
Nathan Redmond (ST) - N/A