Tottenham and Arsenal played out a well-contested derby at Wembley, but there was nothing to separate the two teams at the end of 90 minutes.
The visitors took the lead after Aaron Ramsey converted his one-on-one against Hugo Lloris early in the first half.
Harry Kane put the ball in the back of the Arsenal net before half-time, only to have the goal disallowed due to him being off-side. The 25-year-old then later won and converted a penalty to ensure that the hosts take something from the game.
We take a detailed look at his performance in the north London derby.
Key stats
Minutes: 90
Goals: 1
Assists: 0
Shots (on-target): 1 (1)
Pass (success-rate): 14 (43%)
Dribbles (successful): 5 (2)
Aerials won: 4
Dispossessed: 2
30-second report
Kane did not have a particularly bad game in the derby and even got the ball to the back of the opposition net before being flagged off-side. The Englishman did well to drop deep and allow Son Heung-min and Christian Eriksen to make some good runs. He was muscled out by the Arsenal defence when he tried taking them all on and credit must be given to the fact that he attracted the attention of at least two or three defenders and was beaten down by numerical superiority every time he looked to create something threatening.
Got right: Hold-up play
Kane was not playing as an out-and-out striker for most parts of the game. He lined up with Son in a two-man attack and allowed the South Korean to run freely into the opposition third, while holding up play and being marked by a couple of defenders.
His sense of positioning and eye for pass enabled him to create a golden opportunity for Eriksen just before half-time. The 25-year-old lobbed a pass above Arsenal’s defensive line only for the Denmark international to have his attempt saved by Bernd Leno
Harry Kane
Got wrong: Decision-making
Whether it was playing the right pass, opting to dribble when there was a better option or hesitating to pull the trigger when needed, Kane could have done a lot better with his decision-making.
At times, Son and Eriksen were open in space, but the Englishman decided to run into a swarm of Arsenal players. When he did end up getting behind the defence, he hesitated to take a shot and ended up stretching the play wide and retreating.
His poor pass-success and dribble-success rate proves as testimony to this. Also, the fact that a striker managed just one shot – from the spot – shows how hesitant he was in front of goal.
In all fairness, credit must be given when it’s due. The Englishman took the right decision when it mattered as he dispatched the ball to the bottom right corner from the spot after being pushed in the back by Shkodran Mustafi for the spot-kick.
Verdict
There’s not much Kane could have done as he was marked very well by Mustafi and Laurent Koscielny. It was not a poor performance by any means as he was crucial in elevating the performances of Son and Eriksen.
Also, he won the penalty and scored the equaliser, handing the hosts some confidence in the later stages of the game.
That said, there were quite a few moments in the first half when he was forced into taking the wrong decision. At the same time, Koscielny and Mustafi should be lauded for keeping a check on their man.
Rating: 7/10
Stats from whoscored.com
