Tottenham Hotspurs 3 -2 SwanseaTottenham Hotspurs: Nacer Chadli 7, Ryan Mason 51, Andros Townsend 60
Swansea: Sung-Yeung Ki 19, Gylfi Sigurdsson 89
Sometimes, the football does not seem to matter and when Bafétimbi Gomis collapsed to the turf in the sixth minute here at White Hart Lane, the sense of dread was tangible. Three years on from Fabrice Muamba, it felt as though it was all happening again. For five minutes, the doctors worked on another fit, young but stricken professional footballer.
Mercifully, it was not the same as the infamous Muamba incident, when the then Bolton Wanderers player dropped down with a heart attack and cheated death. After what felt like an age, Gomis could be seen with his eyes open and moving his head.
He was taken off on a stretcher and, at half-time, Swansea officials described him as being “fine.” He was not taken to hospital and he was tended to in the medics’ room at the stadium.
Gomis has a history of fainting, going back to his formative days at Saint-Étienne. In 2009, shortly after he signed for Lyon, he suffered a series of blackouts, which lead the club’s doctor, Emmanuel Ohrant, to say that “since 14 years old, Bafe has been the subject of vasovagal episodes, comparable to a drop in blood pressure”.
This was another one of them, and it will lead to more medical investigations in the coming days and more questions. On Wednesday night, though, it felt safe to feel relief for Gomis.
Tottenham were seeking to bounce back from Sunday’s Capital One Cup final defeat to Chelsea and they did so, Ryan Mason scoring in the second-half and Andros Townsend adding what proved to be the winning goal. Swansea have never won here in the league but they almost salvaged a last-gasp point.
After Gylfi Sigurdsson had scored to set the nerves jangling for Tottenham, the home team were indebted to Hugo Lloris for an injury-time save from Federico Fernández.
The atmosphere had been subdued at kick-off but the mood dropped sharply when, immediately after Nacer Chadli’s early goal, there was the sight of Gomis lying motionless in the centre circle. Gomis’ career has been pock-marked by instances of fainting and, as paramedics and doctors from both sides sprinted to the scene, it was impossible not to feel extremely worried. There was the eerie echo of Muamba’s collapse in March 2012. As Gomis underwent lengthy treatment, everybody was thinking of Muamba and how his life had hung in the balance.
There was concern on the faces of the players but television pictures then showed Gomis with his eyes open and moving his head. He was taken from the field on a stretcher, with an oxygen mask over his nose and mouth. There was applause from all sides of the ground.
It was difficult to focus on the football. It felt like an afterthought, even with so much riding on this game. All anybody wanted from the evening was a positive medical bulletin on Gomis. Still, the match went on. Tottenham pushed to extend their lead and Townsend worked Lukasz Fabianski with a low drive, after a neat lay-off from Christian Eriksen. It was a regulation save and the former Arsenal goalkeeper made a couple more of them in the first-half, from Mason and Nabil Bentaleb.
Swansea equalised on 19 minutes and it was a dreadful concession from the Tottenham point of view and, in particular, that of Jan Vertonghen. Sigurdsson, the former Spur, who was back after injury, whipped a free-kick against Hugo Lloris’ post and the panic seemed to have passed for the home team. Not for long. Swansea worked the ball back towards the six-yard box, Vertonghen hesitated and he failed to clear. Suddenly, there was Ki Sung-Yeung, tip-toeing in, to squeeze a low shot past Lloris from a tight angle.
Chadli’s goal had been lovely. He jumped to meet Danny Rose’s driven cross from the left before steering a cushioned volley into the corner of the net. The technique was perfect.
The collective prayers of everybody seemed to have been answered during the interval when Swansea said that Gomis was stable. The shadow had not been entirely removed but the second-half felt more enjoyable. Jonjo Shelvey extended Lloris and Harry Kane was inches wide with a header before Mason sculpted his memorable moment. Eriksen drove into the area and when Ashley Williams challenged, Mason arrived to take the ball in his stride and finish with a thumping shot high into the net.
Townsend also finished smartly, after bombing almost the length of the field and cutting inside while Sigurdsson’s goal was thumped home from the substitute Jefferson Montero’s cross. Swansea almost grabbed the draw but Lloris dived fulllength to repel Fernández’s header.
Source: Guardian
