Harry Kane double triggers Tottenham’s defeat at Crystal Palace | Premier League

[ad_1]

Perhaps Tottenham finally realize they don’t have to lose 2-0 before letting his talent shine. They have so much firepower to play with such restraint all the time and when Harry Kane is in that kind of mood, full of creativity and hungry for goals, it’s hard to understand why Antonio Conte building life at Tottenham seems so stressful.

Of course, it remains to be seen if this stellar performance alone is enough to convince Conte that he can build a long-term project. However, this was an ideal way for Tottenham to respond after a difficult period. Conte was jubilant on the pitch after the final whistle, congratulating his players after watching them revive their challenge for the top four by defeating Crystal Palace, and during those moments the Italian might have been reminding himself of the pleasure of working with Kane, who had sparked that defeat with two certain finishes early in the half. The second.

Admittedly, Tottenham’s brash display was more than Kane’s craft and ruthlessness. There was invention from the lesser spotted Brian Gill, who collected an assist and some excellent volleys from Hugo Lloris. It was also encouraging that Son Heung-min was energizing and scoring from Kane’s pass. Tottenham, who are two points behind Manchester United, are sure to be more eloquent if Son’s confidence returns.

Really, though, this victory was about showing Kane why he’s the complete attacker. And Palace, unbeaten in the first half of the season, could not contain the England captain. Kane made Spurs purr, although the night wasn’t entirely positive. The score was 4-0, but Tottenham fans still demanded that Daniel Levy resign as captain during the closing stages.

This was Tottenham in the grip of a culture war. It was a warning to the board and interestingly enough, Levy’s criticism was followed by vociferous support for Conte, who spent much of his time in north London grumbling about his supposedly scant resources.

Levy could have been forgiven for raising his eyebrows given that Conte has barely exceeded expectations this season. Failures are not just at the board level. Conte also needs to stop complaining, and in the context of usual half-time displays, it was encouraging to see Spurs trying to move on from their dismal defeat by Aston Villa.

Matt Doherty scored the third goal for Tottenham. Photo: Simon Roe/ProSports/Shutterstock

The opening exchanges were proof that Spurs can play the scruff. They imposed themselves on the palace, caught mistakes from the hosts, and had some promising moments. There was urging from Oliver Skip, starting in midfield in the absence of Yves Bissouma and Rodrigo Bentancur, and trickery from Gil, whose clever performance in place of the injured Dejan Kulusevski on the right led Conte to be compared to Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva.

Palace was shaky, though it got better as the first half approached. Spurs faded and Jordan Ayew missed a good chance, shooting close to Lloris. Joachim Andersen shot inches wide from 25 yards. Wilfried Zaha and Iberici Eazy were muted, but Michael Ulis was lively.

There was another opening for Bals at the start of the second half, Christian Romero almost giving Ayew a goal. Tottenham had to respond. They get better when Kane moves, and a subtle pass gives Matt Doherty a chance.

Subscribe to Football Daily

Start your evening with The Guardian’s look at the world of football

Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertisements, and content funded by third parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Ken was a role model. Moments later, Pierre-Emile Højbjerg had the ball in midfield, Son linked up with Gil and Ivan Perisic crossed from left back. Perisic delivered right away and Joel Ward was no match at the far post for Kane, who buried his head in from close range.

Scoring the opening goal for the first time in 11 games freed Tottenham. Five minutes later, Gill swerved in and passed the pass to Kane, who was again in control, making a save with an early, curling beautiful shot into the far corner.

The palace collapsed. Kane and Son got together, with the latter exploding and setting up Doherty to dig in the third. Faith returned. The Kane-Son partnership came to life. With 18 minutes left in the game, Kane lifted a ball over the top, Mark Guihe fumbled and Son finished cool. The good times are back.

[ad_2]