Some people may question Mauricio Pochettino’s taste in music after he quoted from a song by Britney Spears and will.i.am in the buildup to this match but you cannot argue with his team’s groove. It took a while for Tottenham to find their rhythm against Norwich but once they did they swept the visitors aside with stylish moves and great hits.
There are good vibrations around and Harry Kane and Dele Alli are the duo that really matter at White Hart Lane. “Everybody in the club, all eyes on us,” was the lyric cited by the manager as he urged his players to focus on their own performances while they pursue a top-four Premier League finish. If his team stay in the same groove displayed here, and Kane and Alli remain beautifully in sync, then Spurs can look even higher.
For a moment Norwich must have fancied their chances of replicating last week’s win at Old Trafford. Alex Neil made two alterations to his side and the addition of extra muscle in midfield looked a canny plot initially against a home team who started stodgily. Hugo Lloris had to make a smart save in the fifth minute from a fine curling shot from the edge of the area by Vadis Odjidja-Ofoe, a Belgian midfielder making his first Premier League start for Norwich. But once Spurs edged in front in the 26th minute thanks to a penalty, the home side took over.
The breakthrough came courtesy of a combination between Spurs’ most lively attackers. Alli, who bubbled with inventiveness and industry all game, slipped a cute ball through to Kane, who prodded it past the advancing goalkeeper, Declan Rudd, before being upended. Kane got up to convert the inevitable penalty.
Suddenly Spurs were super-charged, a new fizz coursing through their play. Rudd was looking jittery and fumbled the next corner after the goal, before exhaling with relief as Kane and Jan Vertonghen bumped into each other at the back post as each tried to head into the net. The wickedness of Christian Eriksen’s deliveries from corners tormented Norwich from then on. Toby Alderweireld met the next one with a powerful header and Rudd produced an excellent reflex save to beat it away before tipping over the follow-up from Alli. Moments later Érik Lamela swung in a corner from the other side and Alderweireld soared high as Norwich defenders stood and watched. But the centre-back nutted the ball wide from six yards, provoking furious gesticulations from Pochettino.
The Tottenham manager was soon given the tranquilliser he craved, Kane administering it with an impeccably taken second goal. Alli was again involved, joining in a breakaway attack to knock the ball through to the striker, who swept a low shot into the net from a difficult angle. That was the striker’s 11th league goal of a season that he began with a long luckless streak.
The interval did not disrupt Spurs’ fluency. Nor could Norwich. Rudd, at least, was defiant and the goalkeeper denied Alli in the 56th minute, making a close-range save after a lovely one-two between the 19-year-old and Kane. Rudd then turned away Lamela’s rebound.
The feelgood factor among Pochettino’s team was such that they began showcasing their party tricks. Lamela failed to pull off an attempted bicycle kick but in the 62nd minute very nearly scored with an even more spectacular feat. Running on to a pass from Alli the Argentinian attempted to recreate the rabona goal that he scored last year against Asteras Tripolis in the Europa League. Top marks for artistic merit – but no goal because Rudd tipped the ball out for a corner.
Alli was taken off to a rousing ovation in the 78th minute and, as if to spread the positive feeling throughout the squad, the substitute Tom Carroll scored Spurs’ third goal. And a wonderful strike it was too, the midfielder firing a swirling shot into the bottom corner from outside the area.
Pochettino, a stickler for high standards, almost exploded with rage on the sidelines when his team bungled a four-on-one breakaway, Lamela dawdling as he tried to find a way to present a hat-trick opportunity to Kane. Lloris then spared the home defence a rollicking by making an acrobatic stop from Dieumerci Mbokani.
“We feel very proud of our players, it was a fantastic performance,” said Pochettino, who added that it was important for his team to reassert their high quality after losing their previous home league game, to Newcastle. “I’m very pleased with the reaction. Now we can say it was an accident against Newcastle. We cannot forget that we are the youngest team in the league but we are showing consistency and very mature performances every week. We are fourth in the table but we need to keep working hard. This sort of result should give us more belief.”
