Tottenham slammed as 'frail' against Ipswich Town in ruthless former star's commentary

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Sammie Szmodics and Liam Delap put Spurs in an uncomfortable position at the half time break.

Former Tottenham Hotspur star Stephen Kelly didn’t hold back when criticising a ‘frail’ showing from Ange Postecoglou’s side in the first half against Ipswich Town on Sunday afternoon.

The London outfit finished the first 45 minutes 2-0 down to the struggling Tractor Boys thanks to goals from Sammie Szmodics and Liam Delap in front of a home crowd at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. A win would move Ipswich Town out of the relegation zone while Spurs would pass up the chance to leapfrog Aston Villa, Fulham, Arsenal and Chelsea in the table - although the latter two sides face off this afternoon.

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Szmodics opened the scoring after 31 minutes in the match with a spectacular bicycle kick after the hosts struggled to deal with a Jens Cajuste cross. The former Blackburn Rovers man was unmarked from six yards out as he netted.

Szmodics scores against Spurs.Szmodics scores against Spurs.
Szmodics scores against Spurs. | Getty Images

A second followed just over 10 minutes later as Delap managed to prod the ball over the line following a defensive melee that almost saw Tottenham defender Radu Dragusin turn the ball into his own net. Former defender and Republic of Ireland international Kelly wasn’t impressed by the organisation at the back.

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, Kelly said: “They have struggled in the final-third. They have been off it slightly. The passing and that crispness that we've seen in the past few games has been lacking and they are going to have to up it a lot. They have looked defensively frail and Ipswich have punished them.”

It’s been an inconsistent few weeks for Postecoglou and Spurs. The North London side beat Aston Villa 4-1 in an impressive showing last weekend but defeats against Brighton and Crystal Palace in recent matches remain fresh in the mind, as well as midweek disappointment at the hands of Galatasaray in the Europa League.

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