Kane, Bale Take Tottenham Second with Win Over Brighton

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LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 01: Harry Kane of Tottenham (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images) /

First Period 1-0 Tottenham Take Charge

The first period was from kickoff until about 20 minutes into the game. In that first 20 minutes, Tottenham were on the front foot and had Brighton penned in. Spurs nearly scored at 3 minutes, as Son Heung-Min played in Erik Lamela who patiently waited in the box and then just missed Kane at the far post as the defender cut the pass at the last minute.

Sergio Reguilón found himself in the box only five minutes in and got a shot on target, which debutant keeper Robert Sanchez parried over the bar. Ultimately, a savvy play from Harry Kane got Tottenham a penalty. A penalty which VAR turned into a spot kick, which Kane promptly dispatched for the 1-0 lead for Spurs just 12 minutes into the match.

For a further 6-8 minutes Tottenham continued to knock the ball freely around the pitch, using some nice third man running to create space on the wings and push back Brighton in defense. There were little combinations of passing triangles and duos, which would then lead to a big switch and space for attack, things were looking good for Tottenham. Then at 20 minutes things changed.

It started oddly enough with a poor Brighton giveaway that seemingly had Son in on goal. Ultimately, Son could not get in and then went down kind of easy in the box as he passed it. This led to Kane going down in the box as well and the ball going out. A short VAR check on both incidents later and after both Tottenham attackers may have been lucky to avoid a yellow card for simulation.

Brighton was upset and the momentum seemed to be shifting but before that could happen one last VAR incident had to occur. Matt Doherty seemed to have grabbed Leandro Trossard in the box and impede his ability to reach a cross; but after a long, long review it was no call for Brighton and the match went on. Now feeling themselves more slighted Brighton began to step up as Spurs no longer looked to maintain a stranglehold on possession and the Seagulls slowly worked their way back into the game.