Kane nets 99th as Tottenham drop points
The result moves Spurs to within two points of fourthplaced Liverpool, who have a game in hand, but it was not enough to lift Southampton out of the relegation zone
Southampton, Jan. 22: Harry Kane struck his 99th Premier League goal to earn Tottenham a 1- 1 draw against Southampton on Sunday but Mauricio Pochettino rued the loss of two vital points in the push for a Champions League place.
The result moves Spurs to within two points of fourthplaced Liverpool, who have a game in hand, but it was not enough to lift Southampton out of the relegation zone.
Kane’s goal was his ninth in his past five Premier League starts and he is now just a goal away from becoming the 27th member of the ‘ 100 club’.
But with Pochettino’s side piling on the pressure in the closing stages against his former club, the Argentine will consider this a missed opportunity in Spurs’ bid to qualify for the Champions League.
The disappointed Spurs boss said his side could rue the dropped points at the end of the season, with a tough run of fixtures coming up — the next three Premier League games are against Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool.
“You must give credit to the opponent, but I am not happy with our performance,” he said. “We needed to move the ball quicker and create more. We made a lot of mistakes.
“It is two points we are going to miss at the end of the season because it is so tough between six or seven teams.”
The form guide appeared to give Southampton little chance of victory but this was a spirited performance from the home side. Mauricio Pellegrino’s team had not won in the league since November and dropped into the relegation zone this weekend.
Fans are growing impatient that none of the £ 75 million Liverpool paid for Virgil Van Dijk has yet been invested, with just 10 days left of the transfer window.
Flu struck both teams in the build- up, with Southampton missing Shane Long and Tottenham without Hugo Lloris and Christian Eriksen.
Southampton took a deserved lead in the 15th minute when Sanchez deflected past his own goalkeeper Michel Vorm after being tempted by Ryan Bertrand’s low cross from the left.
But Kane moved onto 99 goals as he headed in Davies’ next corner, beating two Southampton defenders to the ball, to score from close range just 197 seconds after Sanchez’s own goal.