Tottenham Hotspur and Brentford players went back and forth from ceremonial nerves to social media sniping.
Tottenham Hotspur recorded a 3-2 victory over Brentford in the 22nd round of the 2023-24 Premier League (PL) at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England, at 4:30 a.m. ET today. The win moves Tottenham to 13 wins, four draws and five defeats (43 points) and into fourth place, ahead of Aston Villa.
Spurs are without Son Heung-min for the Asian Cup. Offense emerged as a key challenge. A 1-0 win over Burnley in the third round of the FA Cup saw defender Pedro Foro score a goal and the strikers struggle to get going. The next game was against Manchester United in the league. After a 2-2 draw, they faced Man City in the FA Cup round of 16. Despite keeping things tight, they conceded a late goal and lost 0-1.
In many ways, the absence of Son Heung-min was felt in January. Tottenham looked to bounce back. Spurs then faced Brentford, but they were in trouble early in the first half. Brentford took control of the game early on and threatened the Spurs goal. We were heartbroken to have a goal rattling off the post called back for offside, but we eventually took the lead through Mofe in the 15th minute.
Then the taunts from the Brentford players began. After scoring the first goal, Mouffe performed the ‘darting ceremony’. Usually reserved for James Maddison, he performed it with Ivan Toney, provoking the Spurs players. Mbappe’s bizarre behavior continued. Throughout the game, he had a nervous breakdown with his opponent and even got into an argument with Maddison.
The Spurs got their revenge. Destiny Udogie equalized in the third minute of the second half to tie the game, and Brennan Johnson soon added another to put the Spurs back in front. Johnson responded to the Brentford players with a playful look as she and Madison once again performed the darting ceremony, this time with a ‘merong’.
It wasn’t long before Tottenham drove a wedge once again. This time, it was through the back of the net. After scoring 11 minutes into the second half, the Frenchman hit back at Brentford with a darting gesture.
The result was a 3-2 victory for Tottenham. After the game, Maddison told TNT Sports, “Mouffe probably hasn’t scored enough goals in the last couple years to be celebrated. So he had to copy my celebration,” she said, mocking Mope. He later posted a photo of Mope’s celebration on his social media, writing, “It was a story.” Johnson also posted a photo with the caption, “Not in my house.”
Mope didn’t sit idly by. He posted a rebuttal to Maddison’s post. He posted a photo on his social media and wrote: “A goal that came too soon. Too bad we couldn’t win, but I’ve scored more goals and suffered fewer relegations than Maddison in my career. Let’s do it again, Brentford,” he wrote, taking a shot at Maddison.
Coach Enze Postecoglou was not pleased with his players’ nerves. “I don’t like this kind of behavior,” he said after the game. If they are so brave, I will put my players and their opponents in a UFC cage and see how brave they are. We are out here to play football. We shouldn’t be influenced by things that don’t matter.”