Tottenham go top after victory over Fulham

Tottenham Hotspur's best start to a top-flight season for more than 60 years got even better as a 2-0 home win over Fulham sent them two points clear at the Premier League summit on Monday.

Captain Son Heung-min's seventh league goal of the campaign and James Maddison's first home strike for the club secured a seventh win in nine league games.

Son curled a right-foot effort into the top corner in the 36th minute - his 50th goal at Tottenham's new stadium since it opened in 2019 - and then set up playmaker Maddison to score with a cool finish early in the second half.

Unbeaten in the league under new manager Ange Postecoglou, Spurs have 23 points, two more than champions Manchester City and local rivals Arsenal. They next travel to Crystal Palace on Friday with the chance to move five ahead.

Fulham, who were disappointing despite some late chances after Tottenham eased off, are 13th on 11 points.

Victory was especially sweet as the west London side knocked Tottenham out of the League Cup on penalties - the only hiccup so far in Postecoglou's impressive start in north London.

Postecoglou, prised from Celtic and tasked with rejuvenating the club's fortunes, has now enjoyed the best start by a new manager in the Premier League.

But despite another win, the Australian was not entirely happy with his team's performance.

"It was a good result because Fulham are a tough team to break down," he told Sky Sports. "The second half wasn't great and we didn't play anywhere near the levels we can, we were wasteful.

"You have to respect the game and if you are off it a little bit it can drag you down. We took a few liberties which I wasn't very happy with. It was our worst 45 minutes with the ball."

Spurs end Matchweek 9 where they started it, top of the Premier League 🔝👀#TOTFUL pic.twitter.com/3ZsMtG8Yue

— Premier League (@premierleague) October 23, 2023