Tottenham Hotspur strengthened their position in fourth place as harry kaneThe brace helped them beat Nottingham Forest 3-1 in the Premier League on Saturday.
After receiving a pre-match boost from Bournemouth’s earlier shock 1-0 win over fifth-placed Liverpool, Tottenham made the most of it to get their stagnant season back on track.
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“We only have 11 games left, we needed to recover and show that we are strong mentally because in these kinds of situations morale can be really low,” Spurs boss Antonio Conte said. “Instead, I saw the right desire to get a win.”
Kane put them ahead with a header on 19 minutes and then scored a penalty in the 35th minute after richarlisonwho had previously been denied an opening goal by VAR in minute two, was tripped inside the area.
It was Kane’s first penalty since his crucial miss for England against France in the World Cup quarter-final in Qatar in December and brought his Premier League haul to 20 for the season, the sixth time he has reached that mark.
Tottenham, who missed out on the FA Cup and Champions League and lost to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the league in their last three games, sealed the points after 62 minutes when Richarlison set up Son Heung-min for a flawless finish.
Forest, in danger of being sucked back into the relegation zone after a resurgence, only came to life too late with the captain. Joe Worrall heading home in the 81st minute. andre ayew then the Tottenham goalkeeper saved a penalty in stoppage time fraser forster.
“We missed the penalty and if we would have scored that, you never know. Stranger things have happened,” Forest manager Steve Cooper said. “The first half was a bad performance and at the end it was the part that cost us the game.”
The win was a timely boost for Tottenham manager Conte, whose future at the club has been the source of intense speculation since Wednesday’s Champions League exit at the hands of AC Milan.
His team has 48 points from 27 games, with Liverpool on 42 points having played one game less. Forest remain in 14th place, but are just three points clear of 18th-placed West Ham United in the relegation zone.
