Tottenham Hotspur’s season hit a desperate new low as goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky was taken off after only 17 minutes in a humbling Champions League capitulation at Atletico Madrid.
Kinsky twice lost his footing to gift goals to Marcos Llorente and Julian Alvarez, after which he was taken off by interim head coach Igor Tudor, in the fiery Tuesday night match.
Despite making just two starts in the Carabao Cup this season, the 22-year-old was chosen in goal at the Estadio Metropolitano rather than the Tottenham starting goalie.
Tudor’s choice of team was questioned, particularly because he substituted Kinksy just 17 minutes after the teenage goalkeeper made two disastrous mistakes that put Spurs behind 3-0.
Igor Tudor is the first Tottenham manager to lose his first four games in charge after the loss in Madrid. For the first time in club history, Spurs dropped six straight games. When Kinsky was replaced, Tudor did not acknowledge him.
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After six minutes, the goalkeeper’s poor clearance allowed Marcos Llorente to score Atletico’s first goal.
Minutes later, another slip allowed Atletico to double their lead. A forward pass from Llorente should have been dealt with by Micky van de Ven but he fell onto the surface. Antoine Griezmann took full advantage and stroked the ball into the back of the net.
But the calamities didn’t end there. Kinsky slipped again as he tried to send the ball out the other side of the box, allowing Alvarez to score the third goal over the line.
After a scramble, Le Normand added a fourth goal after 22 minutes, but Porro’s low finish put an end to Spurs’ suffering. Jan Oblak, the goalkeeper for Atletico, too, had a nightmare with clearance, allowing Dominic Solanke to score for Spurs once more.
Even though the second half was more subdued, there were still some incredible moments. Atletico broke at the other end and scored their fifth goal when Alvarez tapped past Vicario’s extended foot twelve seconds after Jan Oblak stopped Richarlison’s darting header.
But in an amazing night of many goal-keeping errors, even Atletico’s seasoned goalie made a mistake. As Spurs brought back another goal late in the game, his own bad back pass went straight to Porro, who then passed it on to Dominic Solanke, who scored.
However, Spurs’ evening ended on an even more worrying note. Joao Palhinha and Cristian Romero had a late altercation that resulted in Palhinha’s removal, but Romero seemed to be unharmed as they ended the bout one man down.
