Harry Kane double seals victory over Nottingham Forest

Harry Kane was at the double for Tottenham Hotspur, who held off constant Nottingham Forest pressure to take all three points on Sunday afternoon.

Antonio Conte’s men produced a relatively poor performance in the East Midlands, with a lack of urgency seeing a spirited Forest dominate possession and carve out some presentable chances. But the hosts were simply unable to finish, and endured two key periods of looking susceptible on the break.

In both of those spells, Spurs capitalized. Dejan Kulusevski, one of Spurs’ few bright sparks, broke through the heart of the Forest backline before teeing up Kane for the early opener. With nine minutes left on the clock, the North Londoners killed the game with Richarlison’s superb outside-of-the-boot cross finding Kane in space at the back post, for the England captain to stoop down and head in.

Kane was making amends for earlier spurning a chance of a second goal, with his second-half penalty having been saved by Dean Henderson. The former Manchester United goalkeeper stepped up with a big spot-kick save for the second game here in succession.

Unlike against West Ham United, it wasn’t enough, though. It leaves Forest with four points from as many games, while Spurs rise to 10, level with reigning champions Manchester City and a couple behind leaders Arsenal.

Plenty of promise for Forest – but a focal point is needed

The transfer fee of Morgan Gibbs-White, potentially rising to £42.5m, raised plenty of eyebrows over the last fortnight – but there is no doubt he is the man for this Forest side.

The versatile attacker was brilliant against Spurs, particularly in the first half, causing problems for all three opposing centre-backs as well as Ivan Perisic. He spotted balls nobody else did, and generally looked a level above many of his teammates – which was a feat in itself, after such a strong team performance.

He dovetailed well with both Jesse Lingard and Brennan Johnson, with the trio interchanging positions throughout. They were slightly more weighted towards the right flank, almost with two central playmakers and one right winger at any one time. Lingard took up either of the two left-most roles, Johnson in the right two, and Gibbs-White caused havoc everywhere.

They crafted opportunities at ease, getting in behind Spurs’ defense and into the box, but the cutbacks and crosses were ultimately to nobody. This Forest team is crying out for a center-forward who can finish. Somebody to gamble, somebody to stand at the back post when needed, rather than another busy hard-worker.

Taiwo Awoniyi, despite his impressive physical frame and his winning goal against West Ham, showed he was in the latter camp, and is not the difference-maker Steve Cooper requires. Emmanuel Dennis came on today, too, but appears to be another who fits in rather than stands out.

Forest have a “free hit” of an even greater magnitude in midweek, away to Manchester City. This pair of back-to-back games to work out the formula is a bonus for Cooper, who still has another few days in the transfer market to add to his 17 new arrivals. Though the lack of a finisher will be a concern, the Reds will be encouraged by the immediate link-up between Gibbs-White and Lingard, with the sheer energy of the pair matching their quality. They will build a platform for this team to flourish.

Curious Spurs display leaves more questions than answers

Are Spurs title contenders? We’re no closer to knowing, based on the performance here in Nottingham.

On the one hand, they’ve ground out a 2-0 victory on the road in a febrile atmosphere, when playing well below their best. If Liverpool or City had done the same, we may be throwing around the phrase, “a sign of champions”.

On the other, neither Liverpool nor City would go to a newly-promoted side and be so comprehensively outplayed for long periods. By half-time, Spurs had the top four players for distance covered, while Forest had the top four for passes completed. It was a role-reversal for the usual plucky underdog story at a tight stadium.

Initially, it looked as if Conte had deployed a rope-a-dope to perfection, soaking up pressure and then allowing his spectacular front-three to deliver on the counter. And that was certainly a sight to behold at times. Kulusevski, especially, was absolutely electric and a joy to behold on the right flank as he steamed forward.

With three games in six days, as Conte was keen to highlight in his post-match press conference, the strength of Spurs’ squad will now become apparent. Son disappointed greatly against Forest, while Richarlison provided a pivotal spark when he came on. The Brazilian should realistically be pushing Son for his place, but whether that will happen is still doubtful.

The Sporting News was following Nottingham Forest vs. Tottenham Hotspur live from the City Ground, with commentary below. 

Nottingham Forest vs. Tottenham score

Goals:

Kane (6th min)

Kane (81st min)