Antonio Conte went into this February 19th Premier League tie against Manchester City on the back of three league defeats. He had never lost four in a row in his managerial career but with City in devastating form recently, this was a tie that would test his resolve and once again prove whether his current players are good enough to achieve what he wants at Spurs and that is success. When you have a world class striker at your disposal, there is always hope.
Dejan Kulusevski came in for Lucas Moura whilst Eric Dier returned at the back alongside Cristian Romero after missing the last four games. Rodrigo Bentancur, who had been one of a few bright lights in recent games started in midfield ahead of Harry Winks. Jack Grealish was again absent for City as he struggles to recover from a shin issue.
Harry Kane Shows Why He Remains a World Class Striker
Quick Start From Spurs
One thing Conte would have wanted from his players would have been that they didn’t allow the home side to settle too quickly and he was rewarded for that approach after four minutes with an incisive Tottenham counter attack. Ben Davies played the ball to Harry Kane who hit a first time pass with his left foot that set Son Heung-min away. Son showed his pace and when he may in the past have shot himself, he kept a cool head and left the on rushing Ederson sprawling as he played the ball across the 18 yard box to Kulusevski who scored a dream goal on his full Spurs debut.
Conte had set Bentancur and Pierre Emile – Hojbjerg up to break up play and for the first 15 minutes they did so calmly and Spurs looked dangerous on the counter attack but one area that Spurs were not able to combat was on the left. Emerson Royal was getting forward but at the same time leaving acres of space in behind leaving Raheem Sterling, Joao Cancelo and Ilkay Gundogan with far too much space.
Warning
Tottenham’s first warning came on 16 minutes when Cancelo jinked his way through the Spurs defence but curled his shot wide. The next chance fell to Gundogan but his effort hit the outside of the post. Tottenham’s relief was soon turned to despair though and yet again it was a goal conceded through their own poor defending and the increasingly error-prone Hugo Lloris.
The Spurs captain was at fault for both Wolves goals in the previous defeat and was again here. Sterling whipped in a cross from the left and Lloris just needed to gather the ball but instead made a hash of it leaving Gundogan to equalise. It was the sixth goal conceded in three Premier League matches that Tottenham were themselves at fault for.
Check our Son shirt, on sale now!
It Had to be Kane
Most teams would be happy to get to the interval still level at the Etihad and that is exactly where Spurs found themselves. Pep Guradiola wanted more from his team and at the start of the second half they attacked at such frequency that in the first ten minutes they had 90% of the possession but Spurs still had the threat of Son and Kane which came to the fore once more. The cross from Son was superb and the one time City target Kane finished to make it 2-1 to the away side. “He’s one of our own” echoed around the Etihad and minutes later it could have been three. Son played in Kane, whose touch was superb but Ederson came out to make a strong save. City were dominating possession but Conte’s tactics were starting to frustrate them.
Then it was nearly three again as Kane scored and the Spurs fans went wild but VAR intervened to rule that Kulusevski was offside in the build up. It was a close call but he was offside. The City fans breathed a sigh of relief and joy and it was clear that Tottenham’s resolve would be severely tested for the remaining 15 minutes.
Penalty
For all of City’s dominance it seemed that they just wouldn’t find a way to equalise but they found a way through when Romero, who had been superb throughout handled the ball. Play continued but VAR asked match official Anthony Taylor to check the pitch side monitor and the inevitable spot kick was given. Riyad Mahrez buried the penalty and with seven minutes of added time it might have been time for Spurs to hang on for a point. Instead they did the opposite.
Kane – World Class Striker
For all the talk about Kane and his dalliance with a move to City in the summer of 2021, he did all of his talking on the pitch in what was a sensational performance. From his pass for the first goal to the goal that put Spurs 2-1 ahead he showed why even when he has a dip in form he his still a world class forward and he would ultimately have the final word.
Rather than licking their wounds at conceding the equaliser, Tottenham blew the title race wide open. Kulusevski had shown quality throughout and with two minutes of the seven added on remaining, he crossed for Kane to head home and give Spurs three points.
Conte was ecstatic. Guardiola sank to his knees.
What the Managers Said (BBC Football)
Pep Guardiola
“It’s difficult when they defend so deep. We had the chances to arrive and score. Unfortunately we cannot score. They are clinical. They have Kane and Son and Kulusevski. Their crosses we could not defend.”
Antonio Conte
“It was an emotional game for sure. It was an exciting game. We played a good game. We followed a plan. Manchester City would keep the possession for 65 to 70 minutes for the game so we needed to be good tactically. But even when defending our first thought should be to attack.”
With his recent interview with Sky Sports Italia not going down well with the Spurs hierarchy, Conte was pleased with his players and the effort they put into this victory;
“We have a lot of space for improvement. This is one of the hardest working teams I have managed in my career.”
Tottenham are a Jekyll and Hyde team and it is never easy to know which version will turn up week to week. But after three defeats, this was a win that showed the fight and determination of the players and the manager and reaffirmed Harry Kane as a world class striker if ever anyone was in any doubt.
Main Image Credit Embed from Getty Images
