Sutton praises Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg during first-half of Spurs tie

By Jordan Harris

Chris Sutton was full of praise for Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg for the way the Dane won the ball back to help present Tottenham Hotspur with an early chance in their Champions League tie with AC Milan – in comments reported by BBC Sport.

It was a somewhat cagey start to the game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with neither goalkeeper having a lot to do in the opening minutes.

Of course, the onus was on Spurs to make things happen after losing the opening leg in San Siro last month. And one of the players who looked up for the game in the early stages was Hojbjerg.

Sutton praises Hojbjerg during first-half

The 27-year-old was getting stuck in, winning a number of duels in the middle of the park. He was also always putting himself into a position to receive the ball as Milan looked to saturate the midfield battle.

And one moment led to Spurs getting a good chance. Hojbjerg won possession from Theo Hernandez. And that eventually led to Dejan Kulusevski teeing up Emerson Royal on the edge of the area.

Unfortunately for Spurs, Emerson’s effort was not the best. And the subsequent deflection made the save a fairly simple one for Mike Maignan. Nevertheless, Sutton was full of praise for Hojbjerg’s contribution to the opportunity.

“Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg initially does brilliantly to win the ball with AC Milan high up the pitch. When it gets to Dejan Kulusevski he tries to work it inside but it is a safe effort from Emerson Royal,” he told BBC Sport.

Hojbjerg does tend to divide fans with his personality and some of his performances. But one thing you can never question about the former Southampton man is his desire to win.

He does probably have some limitations to his game. And he is not necessarily the most popular figure. But when Tottenham needed someone in midfield to be up for the fight, it was no surprise to see Hojbjerg in the mood.