Tottenham Hotspur 3-3 West Ham United: 5 talking points as Kane and Son score again in six-goal thriller | Premier League 2020-21
Tottenham Hotspur surrendered a cosy three-goal lead in the last 12 minutes of the game as West Ham United held Jose Mourinho's side to a 3-3 draw in their Premier League fixture at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in one of the most memorable derby games in recent memory.
Tottenham Hotspur were already three goals up in the first 16 minutes of the game with regular suspects Harry Kane and Heung-min Son getting on the scoresheet yet again.
The Korean star needed just 46 seconds to make the net bulge after being set up by his partner-in-crime Kane with a great ball. Son returned the favour in the eighth minute at the end of a quick passing play but it was Kane who produced a brilliant finish after nutmegging Declan Rice that left Łukasz Fabiański frozen on his feet.
Kane got his second goal after meeting Sergio Reguilon's delightful cross perfectly. West Ham were completely overwhelmed by Spurs' early onslaught and struggled to get a grip throughout the game.
Just when everyone thought the game was done and dusted West Ham found strength from within and scored three goals in the final 14 minutes of the game, one of them being an easily avoidable own goal.
Manuel Lanzini, a substitute who came on in the 77th minute, unleashed a vicious strike from just outside the box to find the top-right corner to ensure West Ham leave the game with a point. An outcome that most had ruled out after Spurs' amazing first-half performance.
Here we take a look at the five major talking points from the game as Tottenham Hotspur surrender a three-goal lead in a game of two halves.
#5 West Ham United created chances in the second half and secured a memorable comeback
West Ham United rarely managed to threaten Tottenham Hotspur defenders and Hugo Lloris in the first 45 minutes as they were busy dealing with the hosts inspired attacking display. Defender Vladimír Coufal came the closest for The Hammers in the first half only for his shot from inside the box to be blocked by Harry Kane.
They started the second half very brightly and had two clear-cut chances in the first minutes, one for Tomáš Souček, who missed a golden opportunity from eight yards out as the the ball passed right between his legs when he tried to strike a deflected cross on the volley and missed spectacularly. Spurs did not slip up a lot after their sluggishness at the beginning of the second half.
Just a couple of minutes later Fornals found himself completely unmarked near Lloris' far post and managed to head the ball over the bar, missing a sitter. Masuaku and Aaron Creswell combined wonderfully on the left-flank but Spurs managed to contain their threat before they moved into dangerous positions.
It was from Creswell's incredible delivery in the 82nd minute from a free-kick that allowed Fabián Balbuena to score the opener for the visitors which paved the way for their comeback.
#4 No more park the bus for Jose Mourinho
Jose Mourinho has received a lot of flak over the last few seasons over his infamous 'park the bus' strategy. His team used to just sit back and recycle possession in the game if they got the lead much to the frustration of the fans.
This season it seems Mourinho has put that strategy behind him as Tottenham Hotspur are just relentless in their search for goals and get even more aggressive after breaking the deadlock. For the second consecutive match Spurs had found the back of the net twice within the first 10 minutes of the game.
The Tottenham Hotspur players were confident going forward, linking well with each other and were clinical too. They scored their first three goals with their first three attempts. So, has Mourinho finally decided to un-park the bus at Tottenham Hotspur? We'll find out for sure once the season progresses.
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