Harry Kane’s late double takes Spurs past resurgent Aston Villa

Sport 13:55 11.08.2019

It was a good way to begin a Premier League season, for the supporters at least. At the still gleaming White Hart Lane 60,000 were treated to a thrilling comeback victory by the hosts and a brave oh-so-nearly performance from the visitors. These early hours of a long campaign also begged questions of both these sides, however, and time will show just how telling they are.

Villa opened the scoring in the ninth minute, John McGinn’s confidently taken goal typifying a first-half performance in which Dean Smith’s side out-thought their opponents and matched them physically. The second period brought a shift in both momentum and personnel, with Christian Eriksen’s introduction just past the hour changing the match. Tanguy Ndombele scored a fine equaliser on his debut before a brace in the final five minutes from Harry Kane tied up three points that were ultimately well deserved.

There will be no ‘August curse’ for Kane this year and the England captain looks sharp after being afforded the luxury of a week or two without football this summer. “I think he spent a nice holiday, you saw it on Instagram,” said Mauricio Pochettino. But the impact Eriksen had may nag at the Argentinian manager until the transfer window closes in Europe at the beginning of September.

Spurs, it sometimes seems, have spent the past 18 months constantly plugging gaps, always one or two players short. After a summer of substantial recruitment – Ndombele being joined by Giovanni Lo Celso and Ryan Sessegnon – his options have finally been replenished and new alternatives are possible.

With Eriksen inserted between Ndombele and Moussa Sissoko the Dane found freedom he rarely enjoyed last season and he used it to decisive effect. But Eriksen has said he would like to leave the club if he can find the right move, ending a possibly promising combination before it had really begun.

John McGinn scored for Villa on his first ever Premier League appearance. Photograph: Matthew Childs/Action Images via Reuters

Pochettino may feel galled at the prospect of losing his playmaker at this juncture but he is not one to acknowledge disappointment and rejected the common assessment that Eriksen had been a game changer. “I do not agree,” he said. “I agree that in the first half we were a little predictable, we never found the best way to play and break down [Villa] quickly. In the second half we played really well.

“Of course when Christian came on to the pitch he was fresh and he’s a top player so he helped the team to win. That is the outcome when you have a player who maybe cannot play 90 minutes but has real quality,” the manager said.

In another noteworthy selection choice Jan Vertonghen, who like Eriksen has only a year remaining on his contract, was left out of the squad entirely.

Villa will also have come away considering frustrated possibilities. Their goal came early and was not really a surprise. Spurs dominated possession in the early stages but McGinn had been looking to take advantage of any turnover of possession. As soon as Villa won the ball, he was making runs off the back of Tottenham’s midfield.

He tried it once, he tried it twice and then, in the seventh minute, Tyrone Mings found him running beyond with a raking 60-yard pass. Danny Rose tried to chase McGinn down but the Scot sent the defender to the floor and then finished promptly past Hugo Lloris at his far post.

Villa gained confidence from that goal and held their own in the first half. They then fell away badly in the second, unable to hold possession and dwelling on the ball when they had it. Jack Grealish was robbed on the edge of his own box in the build-up to Harry Kane’s first goal and Sissoko both seized the ball and drove 30 yards through the centre of the pitch on the way to setting up Kane’s clinical second. Dean Smith acknowledged his team had been worn out by the end.

“I’m disappointed with the second-half performance, we were too cheap on the ball,” Smith said. “If you keep giving the ball away and keep having to chase it... I think their physicality showed through at the end. There’s definitely things we need to reflect on and analyse but I think we’ve shown we can compete.”

THE GUARDIAN

IEPF issued a statement regarding Azerbaijani children at the UN Human Rights Council

News line

Russia accuses Ukrainian military chief of ordering downing of war prisoner plane
22:10 05.07.2025
Türkiye supports firefighting operations in Syria’s Latakia
22:00 05.07.2025
UNRWA calls for immediate fuel delivery to Israel-blockaded Gaza before shutdown of basic services
21:45 05.07.2025
Pashinyan: Armenia needs new constitution
21:20 05.07.2025
UN chief condemns Russia's recent 'series of large-scale' attacks on Ukraine
21:00 05.07.2025
Kazakh servicemen arrive in Azerbaijan to participate in Tarlan - 2025 exercise
20:45 05.07.2025
Erdogan: US has crucial role in achieving ceasefire in Gaza
20:20 05.07.2025
Building collapse in Pakistan kills 15
19:45 05.07.2025
Turkish FM Fidan to attend 17th BRICS Leaders Summit in Rio de Janeiro
19:30 05.07.2025
Australia pledges $283M for green energy project by explosives maker
19:10 05.07.2025
OPEC+ speeds up oil output hikes, adds 548,000 bpd in August
18:45 05.07.2025
Inter completes signing of Ange-Yoan Bonny from Parma
18:20 05.07.2025
Turkish president sees Zangazur corridor 'as part of the geoeconomic revolution'
18:00 05.07.2025
Turkish president urges Azerbaijan, Russia to show restrain amid tension
17:45 05.07.2025
China says war 'not a solution' to Iranian nuclear issue
17:15 05.07.2025
At least 18 people injured after fire alert on Ryanair plane in Majorca as passengers abandon jet & leap from wing
17:00 05.07.2025
Azerbaijani PM meets with UNESCAP executive secretary
16:45 05.07.2025
Lebanese president affirms coordination with Syria, warns against sectarian tensions
16:15 05.07.2025
21 killed in Israeli strikes on tents, school-turned-shelters in Gaza Strip
16:00 05.07.2025
Turkish construction sector takes on international projects worth $6.2B in first half of 2025
15:45 05.07.2025
Azerbaijani woman wrestler becomes European champion
15:30 05.07.2025
Mayor: Death toll in Russian attacks on Kyiv reached two
15:15 05.07.2025
Texas floods kill 24 people and leave many missing from girls' summer camp
14:45 05.07.2025
Conor McGregor has interest in White House fight after Trump's UFC idea
14:30 05.07.2025
Netanyahu era sees 40% surge in Israeli settlements in occupied West Bank
14:15 05.07.2025
Equatorial Guinea sues France in UN court to block sale of Paris mansion
14:00 05.07.2025
US president 'disappointed' over phone call with Putin
13:45 05.07.2025
Academy of Azerbaijan`s State Security Service hosts graduation ceremony
13:30 05.07.2025
Azerbaijan and Pakistan ink memo in Khankendi
13:15 05.07.2025
Trump says there could be Gaza deal next week
13:00 05.07.2025
First flight from Türkiye to Syria launched
12:45 05.07.2025
US marks its 249th anniversary of independence
12:30 05.07.2025
Azerbaijan's role in regional integration discussed at London conference
12:00 05.07.2025
Uzbek Minister: Mirziyoyev's visit to Azerbaijan crucial for dev’t of transport links
11:45 05.07.2025
Trump says US will start talks with China on TikTok deal this week
11:30 05.07.2025
Prime Minister of Pakistan Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif concludes visit to Azerbaijan
11:15 05.07.2025
Pakistani premier proposes low-emissions corridor at Economic Cooperation Organization summit
11:00 05.07.2025
Rwanda pledges to deliver on its part of US-brokered peace deal with DR Congo
10:45 05.07.2025
Hezbollah rejects calls to disarm before end of Israeli ‘aggression’ against Lebanon
10:30 05.07.2025
Trump says Gaza ceasefire deal may come next week after ‘positive’ Hamas response
10:15 05.07.2025
Hamısı