A broken curse
Finally the 'concede first curse' was broken and the relief among the Spurs players seemed to burst open the floodgates for a team that did not look capable of coming close to a goal just a few days earlier.
The first half was a mixed bag, with a bright start at what has always been a tough place to go in Selhurst Park, only for the second 20 minutes or so of that period to be tough for Spurs and they had to defend resolutely to keep Palace out.
Antonio Conte told his Spurs players at half-time to be more clinical and they were, with Harry Kane netting twice and in doing so scoring more Premier League goals in 300 appearances than anyone has before him. Matt Doherty popped up with an important goal after his recent scoring streak in the mid-season friendlies and even more crucially Son Heung-min returned to the scoresheet for the first time since early October.
READ MORE: Tottenham player ratings vs Crystal Palace: Kane, Gil, Doherty, Lloris, Son and Sarr impress
"It was very important. Everybody knows the tough start we've had back after the break," Doherty said on SpursPlay. "I thought we played well second half against Brentford, weren't great against Villa and I think even first half today we found it tough at times.
"Second half is the real us, the football we want to be playing, defending strong, playing the ball forward, dynamic on the ball, people running off the ball and clinical up front. It was a perfect night."
The Irishman explained that Conte has been working with the team on the finer details since the disappointing home defeat on New Year's Day.
"We obviously sat down and we watched the [Villa] game. There hasn't been much time between games but we watched the game, looked at what was needed. We felt our attitude and application was good against Villa, we just needed to clean up little aspects technically on the ball and in the final third," he said.
"Just trying to be a bit more dynamic and a bit more creative. I think obviously it didn't happen in the first half but in the second half especially, I guess that's what happens when you score first. The confidence seems to flow through everybody. They're pushing forward and obviously the quality we have when we hit teams on the break like that, it's pretty devastating."
He added: "I think towards the end of last season we were scoring first against a lot of teams and wiping the floor with them. We know that when we score first we're a very hard team to beat. I'm glad we've stopped that trend of conceding first, 10 games in a row, and now hopefully it's 10 games in a row where we score first."
The Irishman was right. The Tottenham the fans expect to see were back in the second half and they tore Palace apart at will. That extra finishing quality was the difference with Patrick Vieira's side boasting plenty of exciting tricky players but without those who can regularly put the ball in the back of the net.
The Spurs supporters needed this. There had been a few more frustrated chants about Spurs chairman Daniel Levy in the early moments of the game before that turned to the singing of Antonio Conte's name, something that hasn't been a regular feature itself in recent games.
In the second half, the fans who had made the trip to south London, most expecting a very different result after recent performances, were treated to arguably the best 45 minutes of football Spurs have served up this season with a flurry of well-taken goals.
They finally got to see young players given and taking their chance with Bryan Gil and Pape Matar Sarr in particular catching the eye before academy product Harvey White got his long-awaited and deserved Premier League debut.
Conte grew more and more animated as the game wore on. For Spurs' first two goals he seemed to barely move in acknowledgement but for Doherty and Son's strikes he leapt around with delight and looked back to his old animated self.
"For sure it was important. It was important to get three points, a good win, to score four goals, don't concede a goal. It was really, really important," Conte told football.london after the game. "There are moments when you need this type of performance and today we did it. It wasn’t easy. Don't forget that to play against Crystal Palace away is not easy. If I'm not mistaken they beat us 3-0 last season. This is always a really difficult pitch to play.
"Today I think that I have many things to be happy about, especially also for the young players. We are facing a difficult situation without important players, especially up front. Today also Bissouma was banned for one game. Rodrigo is injured, also in midfield we were in a bit of trouble.
"Instead good answer from Skippy and a good answer from Pape Sarr. I was happy for Gil, because Gil is going to improve game by game. We are talking about young players. Also Sessegnon, he is only 22-years-old. Also Emerson is 23. We are talking about young players. To see that you can count on them makes me happy. Then also, it’s important because we can create competition into the team and the squad."
Bryan Gil and the young ones
This was the night Bryan Gil has been waiting for. The 21-year-old has not had an easy time of it at Tottenham Hotspur.
He arrived in the summer of 2021 from Sevilla for £21m with Erik Lamela heading in the opposite direction and Gil came with the reputation of being one of Spain's brightest young talents.
There was no doubting his silky skills, his quick thinking or his work ethic but there was no escaping the fact that physically he was not prepared for a competition in the Premier League that takes no prisoners.
Gil soon discovered the huge physical adaptation and admits he found it difficult despite changing his eating habits and gaining 2kgs in his first season. He was sent back to Spain and Valencia in order to get regular football to continue his development, with the very public words from Conte ringing in his ears with the Italian doubting his ability to handle the physical nature of the English game despite his football intelligence.
Gil returned in the summer and worked hard on the training pitches at Hotspur Way and also during the tour of South Korea, often leading the pack in the dreaded post-session long sprints put on by the late Gian Piero Ventrone.
It all added to the Spaniard's improving strength but with the £60m signing of Richarlison, game time looked less and less likely with Conte often referring to Gil as a young one, placed among the names of fringe players also unlikely to get much game time.
Valencia thought they were getting Gil back on loan in the summer but without Spurs able to bring in an alternative and doubts over a persistent tendon injury for Lucas Moura, a move for the Spaniard was blocked late on, much to his disappointment.
He posted a disappointed message on his Instagram account: "Sometimes an old photo makes us value the moments where we were happiest and we didn't realise."
Fast forward four months and Wednesday night brought the scene of Conte enveloping Gil in a huge hug, kissing him on the side of his head and bellowing "Bravo! Bravo!" at the little winger after he came off with 13 minutes to go.
That's because after showing glimpses of what he can do since arriving at Spurs this was the night when Gil put it all together in a performance that handed Palace all sorts of problems and Tottenham plenty of answers.
He was heavily in everything good that Spurs did and played his part in three of the four goals.
First he took Son's pass well, jinked past Joel Ward before sweeping the ball out to Ivan Perisic in the build-up to Kane's first goal and then he set up the striker himself soon after for his second with an incisive pass between two defenders - his first Premier League assist. He was also involved in the fourth goal, racing up the pitch and touching the ball off to Kane in the build-up to Son's strike.
Gil's high fitness levels mean he can run and run and he never gave up on Wednesday night. Whenever he was knocked off the ball, which is still frequently, he bounced straight back up and tried to win it back.
The confidence he gained from being involved in the first goal helped him hugely and from then on he rarely lost the ball, confident in his touch and ability to glide past players.
His strength will improve and his physique is no different to Luka Modric's when he first arrived in England at an older age. The Croatian adapted at Spurs and became one of the world's best and Gil can take inspiration from his adaptation.
Gil will no doubt wonder whether he would have been given this chance by Conte had Richarlison, Kulusevski or even Lucas been fit, but the key was that he took his opportunity however it came.
He brought creativity and guile to Tottenham's play and he filled the gap left by Kulusevski's injury. It was an evening when he proved to Conte that he can be called upon, that he is not just a youngster making up the numbers and that he can be trusted in the Premier League.
He had the Spurs fans signing his name to the tune of Give It Up by KC and The Sunshine Band, which will only have boosted his confidence further.
football.london asked Conte whether it was an important night that proved to Gil himself that the struggle had all been worth it because he was a Premier League player.
"It was really important, you know about Bryan Gil we are talking about a player who was born to play football," replied the Italian. "He understands football quickly. He's so clever, so intelligent to understand the situation. Then you know this league is difficult, because you have to be good in quality and be fast and to have good endurance and he has this type of quality.
"But at the same time you have to be strong physically. I think compared to last season Gil is improving a lot also under this aspect. He has to become stronger physically. I compared him to Bernardo Silva, at Manchester City, because in my opinion they are really, really similar. He has to continue to work really strongly on the physical aspect because I repeat we are talking about a player with great quality."
Kane added on his young attacking team-mate: "I'm really happy for Bryan. He's waited patiently for his chance, worked really hard on the training pitch. You've just got to the ready. I said to everyone, young or old, just be ready for your opportunity and Bryan was there today.
"He would have been a little bit disappointed after the last game but he came out and showed his quality. I'm delighted for him and I'm sure he'll be ready for the next one."
football.london has reported previously that Conte wants another attacking player in the transfer window but with Lucas' continuous injury absence still an issue as he reaches the final six months of his contract, the likelihood of Gil heading out on loan has shrunk dramatically with this performance as he proved what he can bring.
Conte made it clear after the game that he was not looking to loan any of the young players out this month as he needs them in his squad.
"Today Skipp and Sarr showed they they are really reliable players for me and I'm really happy. We exploited the period of the World Cup to work with these young players to improve themselves under the tactical aspect and physical aspect," he said.
"Now they stay with us in the squad. I don’t want to send these young players on loan because the league is very difficult. We have to play Champions League, we have to play FA Cup. I think these young players can stay here to help us face these three competitions."
In the place of the suspended Yves Bissouma, Oliver Skipp had a tough first half alongside an equally shaky Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and the England U21 international looked as rusty as a player would be making his third Premier League start in almost 11 months. He did pick up an unfortunate yellow card in the first half when forced into a late lunge by an underhit Perisic pass.
The 22-year-old improved vastly in the second half before being replaced 66 minutes in by Sarr, who delivered another eye-catching cameo.
Albeit with the game under Spurs' control by that point, the 20-year-old Senegal international looked calm and composed in possession and he reads the game well for a player of his age, making one key late interception after tracking back to stop Odsonne Edouard running into the box and getting through on Tottenham's goal.
The 6ft midfielder has the frame to become a Premier League midfielder as he fills out but that's not to say he's weak right now as that ushering of Edouard off the ball proved.
Conte has taken a real shine to Sarr after working with him during the break, as the young midfielder returned early to Hotspur Way from the World Cup to get the most out of his time with the experienced head coach.
There was another big moment for a young player at Selhurst Park as Harvey White got his first competitive minutes under Conte and more importantly made his Premier League debut with his late introduction on the right of the front three. It was a big moment for the 21-year-old midfielder and the Tottenham academy that developed him.
The only disappointment for the Spurs fans was that 22-year-old Djed Spence did not get a few more minutes to add to his Premier League experience late on with the team 4-0 up, as instead Emerson Royal - who turns 24 next week - came on with 13 minutes to go to a few more of those now regular boos.
It was a good night though for the young players as they convinced Conte that there is no need to fear Tottenham's youth and the more time they get under him the better they will become.
Key players stepping up this time
After all three went missing against Aston Villa, this victory showed how crucial it is for Conte and Tottenham when Harry Kane, Son Heung-min and Hugo Lloris grab a game by the scruff of the neck.
Captain Lloris had made the mistake from which Villa scored at the weekend, an error that sucked the confidence out of Spurs that day, but this time he was in top form.
He made a low strong-wristed save from Jordan Ayew before the half hour mark before making a terrific flying fingertip save to deny the same player in the second half. Soon after he got his foot to a Wilfried Zaha effort as he ran through.
They were three crucially timed big saves and ensured Spurs kept their first clean sheet in any competition since mid-October.
Lloris has come under a lot of criticism this week after his error on New Year's Day but one hallmark of the World Cup winner is that he often produces his best displays when he comes under fire as he proved out in Qatar.
At the other end of the pitch one of the best sights of the night was Son's relief after he fired home his second half goal. It sparked wild celebrations as he threw off his protective and restrictive mask and got some trademark whacks on the head from Cristian Romero as well as a headlock - maybe not the best thing after a facial fracture - while Conte also went crazy on the sideline.
It was a strange night for Son. It looked like being another one of those days when things just would not quite go right for him with the basics letting him down, summed up by one attempted pass that almost flew out of Selhurst Park, although he did play his part in the early build-up for Kane's first goal.
However, while luck has not been on the South Korean's side in previous games so it returned on Wednesday night.
First, his pass across goal was deflected back into the path of Doherty to fire home Spurs' third goal and even for his own goal, he battled well to get to Kane's lobbed pass but his shot took a big deflection off the bottom of Marc Guehi's foot to guide it towards the opposite side of the goal than intended and inside the left-hand post.
How it came though does not matter one bit. All that matters is that Son is back up and running and a weight looked like it was removed from his shoulders. Conte will likely take the chance to use him against Portsmouth in the hope of getting more confidence back in his system against the mid-table League One side.
The Spurs boss went over to give Son a big hug after the match and admits that the South Korean has struggled to deal with his loss of form this season but this spell will only make him stronger.
"We are talking about a sensitive player and a player who maybe suffers a bit when he's not going to score many, many goals like this season but I think also these periods are really good to become stronger in aspects of your character," he said.
"He knows very well that he's an important player for us and we count on him in every game. Now to score was really imporant for him, for us and now we have to continue."
Kane added on his strike partner: "Really happy for him. He's been working really hard behind the scenes and in every game, and sometimes as an attacking player you just need a bit of luck to go your way.
"It was nice for him to continue working, he got half a chance there and to see it hit the back of the net was great. Hopefully that can give him loads of confidence now. He's a really important player for us and we're going to need him if we want to do anything important this season."
Spurs will also need Kane who was back to his best in the second half, scoring twice and playing two key passes in the build-up for Doherty and Son's goals.
His first goal was a battling header at the back post from Perisic's cross, the Croatian having now amassed eight assists in 24 games in his first half season in England. Kane's second strike showcased a superb, instinctive controlling touch from Gil's fast pass and then a lethal finish inside the left-hand post.
His strength, control and pass to set Son through for what would end up being Doherty's goal was remarkable while his flick on and then lobbed pass for the fourth goal were exactly what was needed to throw off the Palace defence.
The records keep tumbling for the 29-year-old and it was Kane's 300th Premier League game - 297 for Spurs and three for Norwich. His two goals meant he had reached 198 Premier League goals by that landmark, more than any other player in the competition by that point, overcoming Alan Shearer who had 196 by his 300th game.
Kane is also just the second player - after Teddy Sheringham - to score on his 100th, 200th and 300th Premier League appearance. He is now just 10 behind Wayne Rooney as the Premier League's third top scorer of all time with Rooney on 208 and Shearer on 260.
For Tottenham, Kane's brace takes him to within two goals of Jimmy Greaves' all-time club scoring record of 266. Kane has netted 15 Premier League goals in 18 matches this season, his joint-best start to a campaign.
Just to add to all of that, this became the 11th calendar year in a row in which Kane has scored for Spurs. He's a wonderful player and Tottenham are fortunate to have had him for so long.
Kane also steered clear of the fifth yellow card that would have seen him miss the north London derby although one in that heated game will see him out of the trip to Manchester City.
"He's an important point of reference not only with the goals but on the pitch, with Hugo our captain," said Conte. "Especially in the difficult moments, you know Harry is on the pitch, ready to fight, ready to help his team-mates, ready to sort the situation with goals and assists.
Kane admitted afterwards that that penalty miss at the World Cup has only made him hungrier for success.
"Of course it was a tough moment for me personally. It's never an easy thing to go through but it's part of football, part of the highs and lows of our sport," he said. "I had a bit of time away after just to reflect and it's made me even more hungry to come back and be successful. So nights like tonight are always good for me and the team and it was much needed after the last couple of results as well.
"After it happened I just wanted to play again as quick as possible and get it out of my head. It's something you have to deal with. I'll probably remember it for the rest of my life but that's part of the game. It's not going to affect me as a player or as a person. I'll keep working hard to improve and it was nice to come back and get our first win since coming back."
Kane was particularly pleased with the second goal he scored against Palace because it was a case of practice makes perfect.
"It was a nice touch and finish, something I practice a lot. Always nice to see it come off. I talk a lot about the first touch before the finish and that one set me up perfectly today," he admitted.
With three goals left to overcome the late great Greaves' Tottenham record, Kane could yet start against Portsmouth, with eight days afterwards until the north London derby, but there is the prospect of him breaking the record against Arsenal.
"It would be a nice game to do it in, for sure, but who knows. I try not to think about [records] too much. I try to just go out there, help my team and afterwards if I score a couple you guys can let me know what I'm doing," he said.
"Of course, it's a really important game. Arsenal are top of the league and playing really well so we'll be ready for that. We've got to try to pick up some results ourselves and get some good momentum. We obviously have the FA Cup this weekend and then prepare for Arsenal."
After the game, Doherty praised his friend and team-mate and said that, despite those odd links to Bayern Munich in the past year, Kane is going to keep breaking records in England.
"He scores goals and the second one he took so fast, I wasn't even expecting it almost. Then when he does take it you expect it to go in," he said.
"He's just an incredible striker. One of the best there's been. He's going to be one of the best the Premier League's ever seen. He's going to break the records he needs to break. Just a world class player and a great guy also."
Kane even told the club's interviewer that he hoped he would be talking about breaking many more records with him to come in many more interviews for the club and Tottenham fans will be hoping for exactly the same.
The sight of Kane and Son undertaking smiling post-match interviews together again was a very welcome one and the contribution of Lloris - often quickly targeted for his mistakes - should not be overlooked.
Conte piles the pressure on
You would imagine Tottenham's medical staff are as frustrated with Antonio Conte throwing them in the spotlight as he is with his list of missing players.
Conte has that similar trait to Jose Mourinho of wanting to put pressure on the medical department at every club they work for. He has expectations of when he wants or needs players back and if they are not then the frustration is aired publicly.
For Tottenham, a club with a history of players disappearing for far longer than first expected, it's a potent mix.
Oliver Skipp ended up missing half a season last year for a pelvic problem he'd been suffering with since October 2020, Japhet Tanganga has had knee issues galore while Erik Lamela once infamously missed 13 months with hip problems.
That's not to say Spurs are alone in football in dealing with problematic long-term injuries or issues that present themselves as something else originally. It's just that putting a return date on players' problems often only leads to further frustration.
Mauricio Pochettino was once so frustrated with Toby Alderweireld not returning from one injury when the manager had publicly said he expected he would, he vowed to never divulge a return date again and from that point on he was mostly true to his word.
Conte is less likely to refrain from predicting returns and that has led to in recent weeks alone, Rodrigo Bentancur and Dejan Kulusevski missing more time than he had hoped.
Now in his latest bit of medical department-baiting, the Italian declared that he expected to have an entirely fully-fit squad to choose from for the north London derby in 10 days' time.
"Today is an important win, as you said, we know after Saturday in the FA Cup we face Arsenal and Manchester City, the two title contenders for this Premier League. To arrive with a good win is really important," said Conte.
"My hope is to recover players who are in this moment injured, because we are talking about important players. I hope in these 10 days to have the possibility in the next game against Arsenal to have all of the players available. I'm talking about Richarlison, Bentancur, Kulusevski and also Bissouma today was out."
It's noticeable perhaps that Conte did not mention Lucas among those players as the Brazilian struggles with that inflamed tendon problem.
Spurs will look to bring in a new attacking player this month, although links with former academy star Marcus Edwards are believed to be wide of the mark at this current stage of the transfer window.
The 24-year-old has been making a name for himself in Portugal with Sporting and in the Champions League, including scoring against Spurs in a campaign that has brought nine goals and nine assists in 24 games.
However, despite impressing, the 5ft 5ins Edwards does not tick many of the boxes for a Conte-style player with his stature, while his inconsistent training levels - criticised at times during his academy years at Spurs and mentioned this season by his current boss Ruben Amorim - would not go down well with Conte.
While praising Edwards before Sporting hosted Spurs in the Champions League, Amorim said: "He has so much talent. He can get much better. He can even get to the English national team. He has to focus more on training and all that is around it.
"Football is not just matches, it's everything in between. I trust him a lot. I know he can grow a lot. He has a long way to go but I think we did excellent business in signing him."
The only logic behind a change of heart later in the window when it comes to Edwards would be his homegrown status and that Spurs have a sell-on clause which is now around 45 per cent for the young winger so could get him at a reduced fee.
However, other than returning home, it's difficult to see why Edwards himself would want to go from a regular starter at Sporting to potentially a fifth/sixth choice attacker at Tottenham.
Edwards' Sporting team-mate Pedro Porro is a player of interest for Spurs, although there are also some concerns there over whether he physically meets the demands of a Conte wing-back.
The 23-year-old Spaniard has had a standout season for Sporting but Amorim has stated that any club looking to sign him would have to pay the £40m release clause.
With Spurs currently having three right wing-backs, they would need to get at least one off the books with offers expected to be listened to for Emerson Royal.
Matt Doherty looks to be returning to form and full fitness at the right time, with four goals in the three recent mid-season friendlies and now a clinical strike at Selhurst Park which had Conte joking after the game that the Irishman is Spurs' top scorer.
Doherty is playing like a true Conte wing-back, getting on the end of balls from the left with his head or chest. The perfect example was his second half run before appearing to be fouled that set up the play for Kane's second goal.
"I love being here and I want to contribute as much as I can," Doherty said on Wednesday night. "Tottenham is a huge club and on nights like this when you can go away from home and win 4-0 like that and contribute with a goal and a clean sheet, that's what we're here for. That's why you want to play the game."
On his goal against Palace, he added: "I practised that left foot [shot] in the warm-up. We did some shots and I had a couple on my left foot that I put into the far corner. I had a lot of space in the first half but because of the wind it was difficult to switch the ball out all the time.
"So in the second half it felt a bit more downwind and easier to get the ball out. I just managed to be in the right place and fortunately although the keeper got a little hand on it, it went in in the end."
Conte will know that he cannot rely solely on Doherty and does not appear to yet trust Djed Spence as a number two, although the fans will be hoping the England U21 international gets a run-out in the FA Cup against Portsmouth.
Tottenham need to get their signings right this month as they did last January with their two season-defining acquisitions of Bentancur and Kulusevski.
Conte has already said there is no room for error in the transfer market at Spurs who face a tough spell of Premier League matches as they play Arsenal and Manchester City twice either side of a trip to Fulham.
With the top four so close and Liverpool and Chelsea hovering behind, Tottenham need to pull off some big results unless they want to get sucked out of the reckoning for Champions League qualification.
This 4-0 win away at a difficult venue came at the perfect time for Conte and Tottenham but they need to harness it to build some momentum for the tougher challenges ahead.
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