'Flatters them', 'thought they could just turn up' - Pundits lambast Tottenham for performance in Rangers draw

Tottenham Hotspur have been the subject of criticism from pundits after their 1-1 draw with Rangers at Ibrox. Spurs headed to Glasgow for their latest UEFA Europa League outing but leave Scotland with work to do in order to secure a top-eight spot.

They are in ninth after six games, only behind Rangers on goal difference and just two points behind Lyon in fourth. Eintracht Frankfurt, Galatasaray and Manchester United are the other teams immediately above Spurs. Rangers produced a strong performance against a Tottenham side that struggled to impose themselves. The first half especially was difficult for the visitors, with a number of loose passes allowing Rangers plenty of the ball in dangerous areas.

Hamza Igamane put the hosts 1-0 up two minutes into the second half before Dejan Kulusevski levelled with 75 minutes gone after Spurs eventually settled into the game. Cyriel Dessers had a golden chance to win the game late on for the Old Firm side as he weaved through the Tottenham defence but put his shot straight at the on-rushing Fraser Forster, who did well to put pressure on the striker.

Former Rangers winger Neil McCann felt a 1-1 draw “flattered” Tottenham. He said on BBC Sportsound: “Rangers thoroughly deserved to win the game, I think 1-1 flatters Spurs. I thought Rangers really shocked this team, they really surprised them with everything. It wasn't just in flashes, I thought they had a consistency about them to carry a threat.”

Ex-Scotland striker James McFadden also criticised the London outfit, speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, he said: “Tottenham were really poor in the first half. They did not have any energy. It looked like a lot of players thought they could turn up here and play however they wanted. However, Rangers showed them they are no pushovers. They controlled the game in the first half and should have been ahead. But they came out in the second half and got the reward for their performance. There was a slight improvement from Spurs after the changes, but in the end they didn't do enough. A draw is a brilliant result for Rangers.”

Spurs goalscorer Kulusevski agreed that his side didn’t do enough to win, as he told TNT Sports: "I think Rangers played very well, we struggled a bit. We didn't play well enough to win the game. I think Rangers played a perfect game, it's a beautiful stadium, the fans helped them a lot. I wanted to change something, to make something happen and I succeeded once but not enough today. It's always important to score but we've got to start winning games now. It's time to win on Sunday. Everybody needs to do a little more than we're doing now."