Tottenham broke two of their own Premier League records in the 2-0 win over Crystal Palace: 759 completed passes, the most the club has ever managed in a league game, and a passing accuracy of 93.12 per cent, their best in the top flight.
Both numbers came against 10 men, and that matters. Jean-Philippe Mateta was sent off after 13 minutes, and from then on Tottenham had the ball almost to themselves. But records that have stood since 2019 don’t fall just because an opponent loses a player. They fall because a team is set up to keep the ball and move it quickly.
Archie Gray headed Spurs in front after 25 minutes and Jan Paul van Hecke made it safe on 73. The scoreline flattered Crystal Palace, and it made it three Premier League wins in a row for Roberto De Zerbi’s side.
How dominant were Tottenham against Crystal Palace?
Very. Spurs had nearly 90 per cent of the ball and built up an expected goals figure of 3.47. They had 34 shots to Palace’s two, nine of them on target. Palace were penned into their own half for most of the evening, and the only surprise is that it finished 2-0 rather than four or five.
Plenty of that passing went through the back line. We looked at how Van Hecke nearly matched Palace’s whole team for completed passes, and he was the clearest sign of what De Zerbi wants from his centre-backs: take the ball, step in and start the attack.
Which records fell?
Most passes completed in a Premier League game
The 759 accurate passes beat the old club record of 747, set in the 3-0 win at Cardiff City on New Year’s Day 2019. That one had stood for nearly eight years. Here is how the top five now looks, using the club’s own figures:
| Passes completed | Match | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 759 | Spurs 2-0 Crystal Palace | 31 October 2026 |
| 747 | Cardiff City 0-3 Spurs | 1 January 2019 |
| 732 | Spurs 3-1 Crystal Palace | 2 March 2024 |
| 717 | Spurs 1-2 West Ham United | 7 December 2023 |
| 701 | Spurs 2-0 Huddersfield Town | 3 March 2018 |
Best passing accuracy in a Premier League game
The 93.12 per cent edged out a record that was only weeks old. The previous best was 93.01 per cent, set in the 0-0 draw with Everton at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on 12 September. The 2-1 win over Liverpool on 30 September, at 91.09 per cent, is also in the club’s top six. So half of Tottenham’s six most accurate Premier League passing games have come in the last two months.
Why does this matter for De Zerbi?
Because it shows the style is sticking. Two of these records belong to this season, and the Everton game shows the other side of it: Spurs kept the ball beautifully that day and still couldn’t score. Against Palace, the passing finally came with goals and a clean sheet.
De Zerbi thinks the difference is togetherness rather than tactics. Speaking after the win, he said: “I think even before the national break we were playing well. We were playing maybe not 90 minutes, but many parts of the game we played very well. We didn’t score. We conceded a stupid goal and then we lost energy. We lost spirit. We lost the right union between the players.”
He added: “If we compare Tottenham before the national break and Tottenham after the national break, now we are playing as a team. Before the national break we were playing as many very good players, but not as a team.”
The players say the same. Gray has already explained why the Marbella trip turned Spurs into brothers, and that camp is where De Zerbi’s “union” started. After £380m was spent on 10 new signings in the summer under majority owners the Lewis family, the squad needed time to become a team. Three straight wins suggest it is getting there.
Verdict: Tottenham’s passing records only count if they travel
Breaking club records against 10 men at home is one thing. Doing something like it away from home, against a side that won’t sit back and wait, is the real test. That comes straight away, with Spurs chasing a fourth win in a row at Elland Road on Saturday.
We don’t expect 759 passes in Leeds. We do expect Spurs to keep the ball the same way, and if they do it with the same patience they showed against Palace, the records will look less like a one-off and more like the new normal under RDZ.
