Tottenham beat 10-man Crystal Palace 2-0 for third straight Premier League win

Early red card reshapes the match

Tottenham Hotspur beat 10-man Crystal Palace 2-0 on 31 October at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, their third straight Premier League win. The turning point came in the 13th minute, when Jean-Philippe Mateta was sent off for a studs-up challenge on Micky van de Ven. Referee Michael Oliver reached the decision after a video assistant referee (VAR) review. According to VAR Jarred Gillett, the studs caught Van de Ven flush on the Achilles, while New York Times analysis judged the tackle clumsy rather than deliberate. With a man advantage for most of the match, Roberto De Zerbi's team controlled the game from the start of the second half.

Gray and Van Hecke goals

Archie Gray opened the scoring in the 25th minute, heading home at the back post from a corner taken by Mohammed Kudus. Palace created their best second-half chance when Dwight McNeil struck a volley, but Dominic Solanke blocked it. Spurs sealed the win in the 73rd minute, when Jan Paul van Hecke got the ball home from close range after Dean Henderson had saved an initial effort, the cross coming from Mateus Fernandes. Kudus thought he had made it 3-0 in the 85th minute, but his effort was instantly flagged offside.

Momentum for Spurs, pressure on Palace

The win is Tottenham's first run of three successive league victories since February 2025, and their first back-to-back home wins in nearly two years. BBC reporting notes that Spurs have moved into the top half of the table as their confidence returns. Palace, by contrast, sit in the bottom three after two league wins in nine games under Frenchman Pierre Sage, and the defeat will increase scrutiny on the under-fire coach. De Zerbi also gave a league debut to Luca Williams-Barnett, an 18-year-old, late in the match. Spurs had won at Chelsea the weekend before, and their results now show a side growing in confidence under their Italian coach.