On his return to Premier League play, Harry Kane scored as Tottenham rallied from two goals down to force a 2-2 draw with Brentford.
England captain Kane scored a towering header to save Spurs from defeat just 16 days after missing a penalty in the World Cup quarterfinal against France.
What happened?
After goals from Vitaly Janelt and Ivan Toney were cancelled out by Tottenham, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg scored an equalizer.
They played much better in the second half after a sluggish first 45, with Kane’s lone opportunity coming from an early free kick that hit the wall.
When Toney flicked the ball to Bryan Mbeumo, who then swept it diagonally to Mathias Jensen in the penalty area, Brentford took the lead.
Hugo Lloris’ backup, Fraser Forster, who is playing in his first Premier League game for Spurs, stopped Jensen’s first-time shot, but the ball fell at Janelt’s feet for an easy goal.
The visitors got off to a slow start once again, falling behind for the sixth game in a row.
For the first time since it was revealed that Toney had been charged by the Football Association for allegedly breaking betting laws, Toney was back in action.
The striker had the ball in the net after eluding Forster, but an offside flag subsequently disallowed the goal. Despite his impressive form, the striker was not selected for England’s World Cup squad.
However, Toney was unstoppable after the break as he demonstrated to the Bees what they would be missing if the FA were to impose a suspension on him.
Christian Norgaard flicked the ball on after Mbeumo swung in a near-post corner, and the 26-year-old strike at the far post for his 12th goal of the year.
Just after the hour mark, Kane gave Spurs a chance to get back into the game by expertly heading back across goal in response to a sweeping Clement Lenglet cross.
A Premier League record, it was the striker’s tenth Boxing Day goal for Spurs.
Mbeumo missed a chance to give Brentford a two-goal advantage, and Tottenham quickly drew even.
Hojbjerg scored from 12 yards out when the perilous Dejan Kulusevski pulled the ball back from the byline and into his path.
After Forster sprinted out of his goal, the Bees countered, and Mbeumo was cautioned for a flagrant dive as he attempted to draw a penalty.
Toney had a chance to win it for Brentford but hooked his effort over the crossbar before David Raya’s late save denied Son Heung-Min a stoppage-time winner.
