If Nottingham Forest could not take any points from this first defeat at the City Ground on their return to the Premier League, they could at least take heart. Another spirited display of proactive, front-foot football by the newly-promoted side showed that, through a combination of their ambitious spending and Steve Cooper’s astute coaching, they have more than a fighting chance of survival.
There is no substitute for quality and pedigree at this level, however, and so it proved. A match-winning brace by Harry Kane not only took him beyond a double century of career league goals and saw him draw level with Andrew Cole as the third-highest scorer in Premier League history, but also elevated another so-so Tottenham display to secure all three points. He may have had a hat-trick too, had Dean Henderson not impressively saved a second-half penalty.
