Tottenham Hotspur beat Leicester City 5-4 in a thrilling encounter on the final day of the 2017/18 Premier League campaign, to seal a third-place finish.
The game was off to a flying start as Leicester took the lead just four minutes into the game, with Jamie Vardy brilliantly heading in a Riyad Mahrez cross. The lead lasted for only three minutes though, as Harry Kane restored parity after being found by Lucas Moura.
However, the Foxes were back in the lead once again in no time, as Mahrez struck a lovely finish in the 16th minute to make it 2-1.
Just a couple of minutes into the second period, Kelechi Iheanacho doubled Leicester’s advantage with a spectacular effort from 25-yards out.
Tottenham hit back immediately to make it 3-2 a minute later, courtesy of an Erik Lamela goal. Soon enough, they were back on level terms as Christian Fuchs put the ball into his own net in the 51st minute.
The turnaround was complete for Tottenham when Lamela made it 4-3 on the hour mark, slotting home a Kyle Walker-Peters cross from close range.
Leicester weren’t giving up easily though, as Vardy and Mahrez combined once again for the Englishman to blast home in the 73rd minute. Once again, Tottenham immediately hit back, as Kane scored his second of the day to make it 5-4 and confirm their third-place finish.
Tottenham Player Ratings
Hugo Lloris – 8/10
The captain was once again key for Tottenham as he denied Demarai Gray a chance to make it 3-1 in the first period. He then went on to make saves to keep Vardy and Iheanacho out in the second half. Not a lot he could do about the goals though.
Kyle Walker-Peters – 8.5/10
The youngster was off to a busy start and conceded the free-kick leading to the Foxes’ opening goal. But he made amends with some purposeful attacking forays down the right flank, hitting dangerous crosses into the box. Set up both the goals for Lamela to put Spurs in the driver’s seat.
Toby Alderweireld – 6/10
Tried hard to keep things tight at the back but couldn’t do it all by himself as the Foxes kept hitting the home team one attack after the other.
Eric Dier – 5/10
Started in the centre-half slot after an injury to Jan Vertonghen during the pre-match warm-up. The England international looked all at sea and was poor especially in the lead up to the Foxes’ third goal.
Danny Rose – 7/10
The Englishman looked up for the battle from the start and made some sharp runs down the left-hand side while going into some strong challenges too. Set Kane up for the eventual winner.
Victor Wanyama – 6/10
Drafted into the starting line-up after Vertonghen’s injury before the game, the Kenyan started off shakily and was at fault for Leicester’s second goal. However, he improved as the game wore on.
Moussa Sissoko – 6.5/10
The Frenchman worked extremely hard in the middle of the park without really making a telling impact. Ran hard, kept things moving and always looked to find his more creative teammates when on the ball.
Lucas Moura – 8/10
The Brazilian attacker was off to a sprightly start to the game and looked dangerous each time he had the ball. Set Kane up for the opening goal and was involved in the build-up for Spurs’ next two goals as well.
Christian Eriksen – 7/10
The Danish playmaker often had to drop deep to help Wanyama and Sissoko in the middle but that didn’t curb his influence in the final third.
Erik Lamela – 9/10
The hero for Tottenham on the day, as it was the Argentine who pulled them back into the game when it all looked down and out at 3-1. Scored the second goal and then played a crucial role in the third, before making it four with a simple tap-in. Brilliant display.
Harry Kane – 8/10
Expertly finished within the first ten minutes to bring his team back on level terms and then went on to seal the win with a brilliant curling strike late in the game. Reached the 30-goal mark in the Premier League for the first time.
Substitutes
Dele Alli – 6/10
On for Lucas in the 76th minute. Tried to make things happen.
Davinson Sanchez – N/A
Replaced Lamela after Tottenham’s 5th goal.
Son Heung-Min – N/A
Came on to replace Sissoko for the last few minutes.
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