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Your support makes all the difference.In the context of Tottenham’s history, this was a point won at Anfield. In terms of what they require to win the title, it was two dropped.
When the final whistle went on an intense, frantic and sometimes brilliant game, Leicester knew that, if they overcame Southampton on Sunday, they would be seven points clear with half-a-dozen matches remaining. They would not be home but they could see the front door.
For most Tottenham fans surveying their remaining fixtures on Saturday morning, the first would have appeared the most daunting, especially for any Spurs supporters with a memory. They had won only one league match at Anfield in the last 23 years and that was an end-of-season game with nothing on it. Here, the stakes were casino-high.
Tottenham had come from behind, finished the stronger side and in Christian Eriksen they possessed the player of this particular evening, although there was fierce competition from Philippe Coutinho.
The last few minutes were spent pounding the Liverpool goal. In the end, Liverpool held firm and, if Leicester can seize their advantage, this might just be the turning point of an endlessly restless season.
The Tottenham manager, Mauricio Pochettino, smiled when asked if his former club, Southampton, could do him a favour on Sunday. “There are six games left and we need to believe,” he said. “We knew it would be very difficult to come to Anfield and take three points but we should feel very proud because we have shown real character.”
It was a fabulous and very English game. Liverpool had not a great deal to play for and, for Jurgen Klopp, the biggest and most emotional game of their season comes on Thursday evening in Dortmund. And yet they fought desperately hard and ran Tottenham very close. The tackling from both sides was hard and usually exceptionally well timed. One tackle from Jordan Henderson that sent Danny Rose sprawling was met with a punch to the air from Klopp.
He was even more animated when, six minutes after the interval, Liverpool broke through. Daniel Sturridge might have scored before half-time when put clear through but he hesitated slightly and slammed his shot against Hugo Lloris’s legs. Now, he created the opening, delivering a square ball to Coutinho, someone from the crowd shouted ‘yes’ and the Brazilian drove his shot past Lloris who had earlier made a fabulous, one-handed save from Lallana.
There were 39 minutes remaining and anyone who has followed Tottenham’s progress this season would know they would be long ones for Liverpool. No Premier League side has won more points from losing positions than Pochettino’s Tottenham and they deserved to claw at least one back.
The equaliser was made by Christian Eriksen’s determination to keep the ball in and then roll it back across the face of the goal in a single movement. Harry Kane let it come across him and then turned Dejan Lovren before slamming the ball past Simon Mignolet. “A very nice striker” was how Klopp described him and when the game was done, the Liverpool manager went over to him. Asked what he had said, Klopp replied: “something nice”.
That was Kane’s 22nd goal of the season, more than any other Tottenham player has scored in the Premier League, although he will have to go some to match the 49 scored by Clive Allen in the 1986-87 campaign that saw Spurs finish third. This time around, third will not be good enough.
Liverpool (4-4-1-1): Mignolet; Clyne, Lovren, Sakho, Moreno; Milner (Ibe 90), Henderson, Can, Coutinho; Lallana (Allen 82), Sturridge (Origi 72). Substitutes: Ward (g), Toure, Skrtel, Smith.
Tottenham Hotspur (4-2-3-1): Lloris; Walker, Alderweireld, Wimmer, Rose; Dembele, Dier; Son (Chadli 67), Alli (Mason 88), Eriksen; Kane. Substitutes: Vorm (g), Trippier, Onomah, Carroll, Davies.
Referee: Jon Moss (West Yorkshire)
Man of the match: Eriksen
Match rating: 8/10
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