TOTTENHAM were forced to turn to boo-boy Davinson Sanchez after a five-goal collapse inside 23 minutes at Newcastle.
There were only 61 seconds on the clock when Jacob Murphy rifled the Magpies ahead at St. James’ Park.
Tottenham caretaker boss Cristian Stellini had opted to experiment with a back four rather than the club’s more traditional three-man defence.
And it soon blew up in his face when Joelinton doubled the advantage in the sixth minute.
Murphy grabbed his second just moments later before Alexander Isak got his name on the scoresheet.
Then, just as the clock ticked into the 21st-minute, Tottenham were floored again as Isak made it five.
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Stellini had seen enough, and he was forced to turn to Colombian defender Sanchez, the man he subbed on and then off last week, to shore up his backline against ruthless Newcastle.
He replaced midfielder Pape Sarr as Spurs switched to a three-man defence – but the damage was already done.
One fan reacted to the decision on Twitter with: “Davinson Sanchez, the man who was booed by his own fans and substituted as a sub last game, is coming on. Unbelievable.”
Another wrote: “Bringing on Davinson Sanchez for damage limitation controls, 5-0 down in 20 minutes is absolute peak Spursy.”
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A fellow fan said: “Justice for Davinson Sanchez.”
While another added: “Spurs’ response to going 5-0 down after 23 minutes is to put on a defender, Davinson Sanchez, who was booed by his own supporters last week. Already looks damage limitation.”
It comes just a week after Tottenham fans booed Sanchez in the 3-2 loss to Bournemouth.
Sanchez came on in the 35th minute for the injured Clement Lenglet but his mistake led to Dominic Solanke putting the Cherries’ 2-1 ahead on 51 minutes.
The Colombian was booed with his every touch afterwards and as he was brought off just before the hour as Spurs chased the game.
Sanchez, 26, joined the club from Ajax in 2017 for £42m and has played over 200 times for the club, though he has largely been overlooked this term.
And he has done little to appease fans with some shaky performances this season, including a disastrous “thin air” tackle during last month’s FA Cup defeat at Sheffield United.
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk