Gallagher's Equalizer Keeps Spurs Unbeaten Under De Zerbi

Conor Gallagher needed one chance. He took it.

Tottenham’s new midfielder struck a sharp equaliser in a 1-1 draw with Getafe on Saturday, preserving Spurs’ perfect-preseason aura, if not their perfect record, in a strange, shortened contest played behind closed doors at the club’s training ground.

This was no standard friendly. Two halves of 35 minutes, no crowd, and a LaLiga side that finished seventh last season treating it like a proper workout rather than a lap of honour for Tottenham’s four straight preseason wins.

De Zerbi’s new-look spine

Roberto De Zerbi used the occasion to show his hand. Sandro Tonali, Jan Paul van Hecke and Andy Robertson all started, while Archie Gray wore the armband – a striking statement in a squad full of senior names.

The structure was clear: Tonali knitting play, Gray directing traffic, Robertson raiding from the left. Spurs moved the ball with intent, but the cutting edge came and went.

Their best moment of the first half arrived right at the end of it. Robertson, already dictating set-piece duty, swung in a free-kick and Ben Davies rose to meet it. His header had direction but not quite the power to break the deadlock. For all Tottenham’s control, Getafe reached the interval unscathed.

Getafe strike first

After the restart, the pattern remained familiar. Mikey Moore ghosted into a dangerous area but couldn’t quite stretch enough to turn in a chance that begged for a finishing touch. Richarlison then climbed to meet a set-piece and almost forced David Soria into submission, the Getafe goalkeeper scrambling to keep the ball out.

Then the Spanish side landed the first real punch.

Alberto Risco, sharp between the lines, played a neat one-two on the edge of the box and burst through. Faced with Antonín Kinsky, he stayed composed and beat the Spurs keeper in the 55th minute. Against the run of possession, Getafe had the lead and something to protect.

Gallagher levels the mood

The response was swift.

Ten minutes after Risco’s opener, Tottenham finally turned their pressure into something tangible. In the 60th minute, the ball was fired into Richarlison, who held his ground and drew defenders in. The lay-off broke kindly, and Gallagher arrived with the timing of a player who has made a career out of late runs into the box.

One sweep of his right foot and the ball was in, Soria beaten, the score level. No fuss, no extra touch, just a clean, decisive finish.

The goal didn’t just restore parity; it reasserted Tottenham’s authority on a contest that had threatened to slip away from them despite their superiority in general play.

Richarlison denied at the death

Spurs pushed for a winner in the final minutes of this 70-minute exercise. Again it was Richarlison who rose highest, meeting another cross with a firm header that seemed destined to settle it. Again Soria stood in the way, producing a late save that ensured Getafe left north London with a draw – and a small psychological boost of their own.

For De Zerbi, the unbeaten preseason run stays intact, the new arrivals have minutes in their legs, and Gallagher has his first telling contribution in a Tottenham shirt.

The real question now is whether this controlled, experimental August football can harden into something ruthless when the Premier League whistle blows for real.