Tottenham’s Season in Ten Matches
By Ryan Wrenn
![STOKE ON TRENT, ENGLAND - APRIL 18: Mauricio Pochettino manager of Tottenham Hotspur applauds the travelling fans after victory in the Barclays Premier League match between Stoke City and Tottenham Hotspur at the Britannia Stadium on April 18, 2016 in Stoke on Trent, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images) STOKE ON TRENT, ENGLAND - APRIL 18: Mauricio Pochettino manager of Tottenham Hotspur applauds the travelling fans after victory in the Barclays Premier League match between Stoke City and Tottenham Hotspur at the Britannia Stadium on April 18, 2016 in Stoke on Trent, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/60751b2f670ece7bbcc44d5161cac60ab4c458f5afb3429d64cfd5062a340fbf.jpg)
Crystal Palace 1 – 3 Tottenham, January 23rd
The New Year began with some disappointments for Tottenham. A 1-1 draw against Everton started the year followed closely thereafter by a loss to eventual champions Leicester.
A win against Sunderland helped, but the true redemption came when Tottenham traveled to Crystal Palace in the 23rd of January.
Palace were struggling in 2016, and would continue to do so right up through the end of the season. They weren’t expected to earn anything from Tottenham’s visit, but when Vertonghen scored an own-goal to give the hosts the lead it felt like that narrative might flip.
Indeed, Tottenham struggled to get back into the game thereafter. Palace sat back and contended themselves with seeing out their narrow lead until the final whistle.
Once again, Tottenham were saved from some help of their bench. Nacer Chadli came in in the 56th minute, providing some much-needed width against a tightly packed Palace side. He set up Kane’s equalizer in the 63rd minute and eventually scored a cracking goal in stoppage time.
As much as Chadli influenced proceedings after coming on, it was Dele Alli who stole the show. For Tottenham’s second goal, Alli controlled a ball passed to him by Eriksen and deftly struck the ball past Wayne Hennessey. It ended up being arguably the goal of Tottenham’s season.
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