How Harry Kane’s absence is effecting Tottenham’s structure

Tottenham’s leading man Harry Kane has been ruled out with a hamstring injury, with a purported return to the first team coming no sooner than mid-April.

With 17 goals in all competition this season, Kane is Tottenham’s only recognized out-and-out striker, with 17-year-old Troy Parrott the only other pure attacker on Tottenham’s first team roster.

Jose Mourinho has recently stated he believes Parrott has a bright future, however, it is too early in his career to throw him in into the Premier League mix.

Without Kane, Tottenham’s goals have dried up, but the positional transformation without a leading man in the starting eleven hurts Tottenham’s attacking play the most.

Son out of position

Heung-Min Son is Tottenham’s next best threat in front of goal, scoring 11 in all competitions so far this campaign.

Son has experienced an inconsistent season, with two red cards taking the gloss off some outstanding goals and setup play.

With Kane out of the squad, Son and Lucas Moura have been used to fill the Number 9 position.

Son is a dangerous attacker and has the ability to fill in as the leading man. However, playing him up front takes the South Korean away from his preferred wide position, limiting his opportunities to drive at opposing defences, thereby restricting his ability to impact games.

Son, when playing with Kane, is able to peel off to receive the ball while making dangerous runs in on goal, providing width and speed off the target man.

Son is suffering from the responsibility of attempting to create attacking chances on his own rather than focussing on driving toward goal. And, like Lucas Moura, he doesn’t thrive in holding up play with his back to goal. The only solution is to quickly acquire a leading front man.

Overlap

Tottenham fans are aware that Kane is much more than a poacher. With his exquisite range of passing and tireless work rate, Kane leads by example in various forms.

Kane, who enjoys pushing off defenders with his back to goal to pick up the ball in midfield, swings regularly the ball out wide to his on-rushing full backs or wingers, typically finding Serge Aurier marauding down the right.

When Kane drops deep into midfield, which he loves to do, it encourages defenders to follow him while allowing the likes Dele Alli, Son or Moura to overlap and exploit the space created by Kane’s movement.

When Tottenham up front rely on Son or Moura, a severe deficiency is created by their absence on the wings.

Confidence in crossing

Since Fernando Llorente left the club, Tottenham have lacked a dangerous aerial threat from corners and crosses.

Moura and Dele possess aerial quality, but the lack the guile and physicality of a strong out-and-out front man.

Tottenham’s lack of height in attack, an inadequacy magnified by Kane’s absence, takes away one of their main attacking threats. Defenders aren’t nearly as worried by incoming crosses, allowing them to focus on other priorities.

It’s making Spurs more one-dimensional, even predictable. I think we can all agree on how best to solve this swelling issue. But only time will tell if Daniel Levy will pull the trigger in time to save Spurs’ season.