It is hard to get excited about any Tottenham victory at the moment given their consistent inconsistency, but a 2-0 win over Brighton increased the pressure on fourth-placed Arsenal and offered fresh hope of a late push for the Champions League places.
With Arsenal’s 2-0 defeat to Liverpool, Spurs moved to within three points of their rivals – with a home north London derby still to come.
Of course, if Spurs are to truly maintain a top-four push in the run-in, they must follow up this win with another against West Ham on Sunday and finally bring to an end their almost farcical cycle of win-loss-win-loss since the turn of the year.
Cristian Romero’s deflection and a record-breaking Harry Kane goal sealed a comfortable win over the struggling Seagulls and if Spurs had taken their chances it could easily have been another big scoreline in the vein of the 4-0 win at Leeds and 5-0 thrashing of Everton.
Kane beat the offside trap from Rodrigo Bentancur’s brilliant pass and rolled under Robert Sanchez to make the game safe after Dejan Kulusevski’s shot deflected in off Romero in the first half.
Kane also missed an open goal inside five minutes, while Kulusevski and Sergio Regulion – twice – squandered one-on-ones with Brighton goalkeeper Sanchez, who kept the scoreline respectable. Spurs also defended more robustly than in recent weeks, restricting goal-shy Brighton to no clear cut chances, with Romero and Eric Dier particularly impressive.
Like Leeds and Everton before them, Brighton are a side in free-fall, with this their sixth defeat on the bounce.
For Spurs, there are only so many conclusions to draw from this result and the real test of whether this could be a springboard for an improved run will come against the Hammers in what is a massive game in both clubs’ seasons.
Kane a record-breaker (again)
Another game, another Harry Kane record. The England captain killed off Brighton with his 95th away goal in the Premier League – more than anyone else in the competition’s history and in 104 fewer away appearances than second-placed Wayne Rooney.
Kane also moved clear of Frank Lampard as the Premier League’s fifth all-time top scorer on 178 goals as he edges towards Shearer’s record.
Kane has made individual scoring feats commonplace, to the point where each new milestone no longer has the same impact as the last.
While there is nothing new to say about Kane’s brilliance, it really does bear stressing that Spurs fans are witnessing perhaps a once-in-a-lifetime goalscorer, who will go down as one of the greatest in the history of English football – let alone in the annals of the Premier League.
Spurs may be an frustratingly inconsistent side, going through a sustained up-down spell, but Kane remains a player at the very top and one worth celebrating.
Kulusevski bright start continues
Dejan Kulusevski’s bright start at Tottenham offers hope that Antonio Conte and the club may yet prove a good long-term fit.
On the eve of the match, Conte warned that he could walk away from Spurs at the end of the season if the club’s “vision” does not match his own.
One potential sticking point in the talks planned for the end of the season is Conte’s desire to work with experienced players but Tottenham’s policy of buying young, high-potential stars.
But in 21-year-old Kulusevski, Spurs have shown that they can buy young while still dramatically improving Conte’s first-team.
The Swede was decisive again at the Amex, creating the opener when his shot was deflected past a wrong-footed Robert Sanchez by Cristian Romero and helping to win the ball in the build-up the counter-attack for the second goal.
Assuming Kulusevski is credited with an assist, he will have scored twice and created five goals in his first seven starts for Spurs – a hugely impressive impact from a January signing, who has never previously played in the Premier League.
His impact on the team has been similar to Jesse Lingard’s at West Ham last season and he would surely be getting more plaudits if Spurs – or indeed Conte himself – were more consistent.
A few more signings like Kulusevski and Bentancur, who was excellent at the Amex, would suit both Spurs and Conte, and offer hope of long-term success.
