TROSSED AWAY!
Brighton grab first home win but Spurs look feeble without Kane
IF THIS is life without Harry Kane then Tottenham can kiss their Champions League aspirations goodbye. They looked feeble without their talismanic striker and have no chance of finishing in the top four if he injured long-term.
Tottenham hope to find out in the next 48 hours the extent of Kane’s double ankle injury sustained against Liverpool last Thursday — and manager Jose Mourinho can only pray his striker makes a quick recovery.
The loss to Jurgen Klopp’s side on Thursday was truly miserable, with Kane’s injury and a half-time inquest that enraged Serge Aurier so much that he stormed out of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Aurier was not even on the bench last night, a clear sign of how Mourinho feels about his defender’s behaviour.
Tottenham picked up where they left off against the champions — atrocious. They were a goal down inside 17 minutes and should have been behind well before Leandro Trossard fired Brighton ahead.
Pascal Gross hit the foot of the post in the third minute following a lovely move as Brighton sensed the apprehension that had overcome their opponents. The goal Brighton’s start warranted, fired sweetly home by Trossard, was the end product of another superb move.
And the home side had no intention of taking their foot off the accelerator. Tottenham were outmuscled, out-thought and outplayed. The reshuffled attack in their star striker’s absence was virtually non-existent in the firsthalf. Gareth Bale, making a rare Premier League start, was a shadow of the player we know.
He would later suffer the ignominy of being substituted just after the hour mark. Steven Bergwijn, replacing Kane as central striker, was just as lacklustre. Son Heung-min, inevitably, was the pick of attack — but even he was flattering to deceive.
Bale’s main contribution was to clear Lewis Dunk’s bullet header from Pascal Gross’ corner — arrowing towards the top corner — off the line in the 37th minute. A two-goal lead would not have flattered Brighton. Indeed, to focus on Tottenham’s deficiencies is unfair on Graham Potter’s men.
They were excellent, dripping with quality. Adam Webster is looking increasingly accomplished in defence for Brighton — surely England are keeping an eye on his development. And in attack, Neal Maupay and Alexis McAllister were particularly impressive as Brighton won their first home league game in 15 attempts.
Mourinho responded at half-time by introducing Carlos Vinicius for Davinson Sanchez as Spurs switched to a back four. The summer arrival from Benfica nearly made an instant contribution, but his header from Bale’s corner in the 53rd minute was saved by Robert Sanchez.
Mourinho was hoping it was a sign of things to come but his side were indebted to Hugo Lloris three minutes later when the French goalkeeper produced an instinctive stop to deny Ben White after Spurs failed to clear Gross’s corner.
If anything, it was Brighton who looked more likely to score, and Maupay headed an excellent chance wide in the 72nd minute.
BRIGHTON (3-4-2-1): Sanchez 6; White 7, Dunk 8, WEBSTER 8.5; Veltman 7 (Burn 72min, 6), Gross 7.5, Bissouma 7.5, March 7.5; Mac Allister 8, Trossard 8 (Connolly 79); Maupay 7.5 (Lallana 79).
Subs not used: Moder, Alzate, Izquierdo, Tau, Zeqiri, Walton. Scorer: Trossard 17. Booked: Burn, Maupay. Manager: Graham Potter 8.
TOTTENHAM HOTPSUR (3-4-3): Lloris 6; Rodon 6, Alderweireld 6, Sanchez 6 (Vinicius 46, 6); Sissoko 5.5, Hojbjerg 6.5, Ndombele 6 (Lamela 74, 6), Davies 6; Bale 5 (Moura 61, 6), Bergwijn 5.5, Son 6.5. Subs not used: Doherty, Winks, Hart, Dier, Tanganga, Devine. Booked: Alderweireld. Manager: Jose Mourinho 6. Referee: Peter Bankes 6.