Just when a disappointing afternoon for
Tottenham ostensibly could not get any worse, Harry Kane limped off down the tunnel 15 minutes from time clutching his left hamstring, with Spurs slipping to second defeat in four league matches. Spurs’ performance was abject, particularly defensively, and José Mourinho’s ire led to him being booked by the referee Mike Dean after the Portuguese petulantly wandered over to the Southampton dugout to confront a member of Ralph Hasenhüttl’s backroom staff, thought to be the goalkeeping coach, Andrew Sparkes.
For Southampton this was the latest episode in a brilliant
Christmas period, with victory here lifting them towards mid-table after a return of 10 points from a possible 12. Familiar flaws marred Tottenham’s first outing of the new year, with Danny Ings fooling Toby Alderweireld to continue his extraordinary goalscoring form. It made painful viewing for Mourinho, who reacted to being booked by apologetically patting Dean’s torso, as another team successfully pierced holes in his frail defence.