Tottenham Make It Three in a Row as Gray and Van Hecke Sink 10-Man Palace

Tottenham's revival under Roberto De Zerbi gathered further pace on Saturday as they beat Crystal Palace 2-0 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, recording a third successive Premier League win for the first time in 20 months. The London derby turned decisively in the 13th minute, when Palace forward Jean-Philippe Mateta was shown a straight red card for a studs-up challenge on Micky van de Ven, leaving the visitors to play almost the entire match with ten men. Archie Gray broke the deadlock in the 25th minute, arriving at the back post to head home a Mohammed Kudus corner for his third Tottenham goal. Spurs dominated territory from that point on, but had to wait until the 73rd minute for the second goal. Jan Paul van Hecke, the summer signing from Brighton, saw his first header tipped onto the crossbar by Dean Henderson and bundled in the rebound while still on the ground. Gray was withdrawn at half-time after picking up a yellow card, but Tottenham never looked in serious danger. The win keeps Spurs' upward momentum going, while defeat increases the scrutiny on Palace boss Pierre Sage, whose side have now lost again after a difficult run of form.