Mateta's red card at 13 minutes left Palace with ten men

Tottenham beat Crystal Palace two goals to nil, but the decisive moment came in the first quarter of an hour.

Crystal Palace were down to ten men before the first quarter of an hour had passed. A VAR review at the 12th minute upgraded a booking for Jean-Philippe Mateta, and he was shown a red card a minute later. Tottenham went on to win 2-0 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but nearly every figure in this match has to be read against that one decision, because a side playing a man short is asked to defend in a completely different way.

Tottenham took the lead in the 25th minute, with Mohammed Kudus credited with the assist, and Jan Paul van Hecke made it two after 73 minutes. Van Hecke's goal was enough to earn him the highest rating of anyone on the pitch, an 8.1, but he was not the only Tottenham player who made the afternoon count. Kudus was involved throughout, with three key passes and eleven duels won, more than any other player in the match ratings. Those are the kinds of contributions that tend to appear when the opposition has less of the ball and fewer players to press with.

Tottenham had 79% of the ball, far above the 61.4% they average at home this season, and they took 34 shots where they usually take 14.1. Expected goals is a measure that gives each shot a value based on how often chances of that kind go in, and by that yardstick Tottenham's total of 2.93 was well beyond their home norm of 0.92. Put simply, the home side did not just have more of the ball and more attempts; their chances were consistently better than the ones they normally create.

Palace had 21% of the ball against the 43.3% they average away from home, and they managed two shots in the whole match. Their expected goals figure of 0.21 sits far under the 1.43 they usually produce on their travels, which means even the few attempts they did take were poor ones. D. Henderson was the busier goalkeeper, making seven saves, and it was his work that kept the margin from being much wider. Palace were not short of effort on the day, but a team with a smaller share of possession and one fewer player simply has fewer ways to create anything at all.

The league gives us a useful yardstick. Sides in this division average 13.4 shots and 1.38 expected goals per match, so Tottenham's 34 shots were roughly two and a half times the usual number. Matches here have averaged 2.8 goals, and this one ended with only two, which tells us the scoreline understated how much Tottenham had the better of the chances. Tottenham also kept a clean sheet, having conceded 1.3 goals a game at home this season, so the defensive side of their afternoon was as ordinary as their attacking side was not.

Tottenham sit 14th in the table, and their home record reads two wins, three draws and three defeats. Palace are 17th, and their away record is two wins, one draw and five defeats.

Player of the matchJ. van Hecke1 goal8.1

M. Kudus1 assist7.7

A. Robertson3 chances created7.5

C. Gallagher1 shot on target7.4