TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1 MIDDLESBROUGH 0

BY AYODELE ODUMADE AT WHITE HART LANE

Tottenham beat a stubborn Middlesbrough to keep their title hope alive, thanks to a penalty by Harry Kane.  They remain 9 points behind the league leaders Chelsea. Middlesbrough did not make it easy for them as they came to defend in the hope that they could nick a valuable point.  At this stage of the season performances do not really matter at the business end of things as long as you get a result. Spurs managed both though the score line does not tell the whole story.

In the past this was the kind of game in which Spurs would have tripped up but Mauricio Pochettino who had his 100^th game in charge of Spurs has added some steel and a winning mentality, which had been largely missing from this club in the past.

Spurs came out of their trap like greyhounds with Dele Alli playing a weighted pass to Heung-Min Son to his left and Victor Valdes had to make a save from his shot to prevent Spurs taking an early lead. Christian Eriksen played a reverse pass to Alli a few minutes later but he could only find the side netting.

Just after the midway point of the half Eriksen swung a corner into the Middlesbrough area, which Toby Alderweireld met with a header but it clipped the upright and went out of play.  In the 34^th minute Son crossed into the Boro area but Harry Kane could not keep his header down and it flew over the bar.  Although Boro saw the ball occasionally, Spurs did not give them time to dwell on it with Victor Wanyama and Mousa Dembele snapping at their heals and dousing any fire Boro tried to light in the form of an attack. 

Kane did find the net before the break from a Son cross but it was ruled out for offside. Although Spurs dominated possession in the first half it remained goalless at the break.

Five minutes after the break, Kane picked up the ball inside the Boro half and drove towards goal, teed up Son whose shot was tipped round the post by Valdes.  Spurs were awarded a penalty in the 56^th minute when Espinosa Bernardo brought Son down in the penalty area. Kane stepped up and sent Valdes the wrong way to give Spurs the lead.  Middlesbrough’s resistance was finally broken.  Seconds later it should have been two as Kane laid a pass to Eriksen but Valdes saved it yet again.

Son nearly doubled Spurs lead when he was played in by Alli but from a tight angle he could only find the side netting. With 6 minutes left Fabio Da Silva crossed to Alvaro Negredo but he could not direct his header goal wards as it went wide. In stoppage time Boro had a chance to equalise but De Roon’ failed to hit the target.  The Spurs faithful got restless as Spurs failed to add a second but the fans managed to lift the team over the line.  Ben Davies who was filling in for the injured Danny Rose had a good game and linked up well with the attack and managed to keep Adama Traore quiet.

Although it seems like a long shot for Spurs to win the league, they have somehow kept in touch with the league leaders and consolidated their push for one of the Champions League spots. Boro who were hoping to put some distance between themselves in the dogfight have been dragged back into it again and the Teeside club must be worried that they could make a quick exit back to the Championship.  Aitor Karanka would have been disappointed that the team did not manage a single shot on target throughout the game.

He said: “When we went onto the pitch in the first half we were afraid but they were better in the second half. In the end we had chances to score. We are good enough to stay up. The attitude of the players was amazing. It is going to be difficult for Spurs to catch Chelsea because they are playing very well.”

Pochetinno said: “ I am always optimistic. We did not concede one shot on target.  It is true that in the last few minutes we were a little bit nervous but I think we played much better. We deserved the three points. In the last few weeks we have been saying how difficult it is to score and win games. I am pleased with the performance. We are real contenders. It is good to put pressure on us. I manage pressure very well. It is difficult for a manager to rotate the team and keep them all motivated.”