Antonio Conte’s unbeaten run in the Premier League as Spurs boss just about remains intact after Steven Bergwijn scored a stoppage time brace to earn a 3-2 win at Leicester.
Tottenham dominated large portions of the game though were punished for sloppy defending by a resolute Foxes side, but managed to turn the match on its head at the very last.
Patson Daka and Harry Kane both went close to opening the scoring early on, with the Zambian striker just not getting a clean enough touch on Luke Thomas’ searching cross and the wing-back knocking the England captain’s effort off the line at the other end.
Spurs dominated the opening exchanges, with Kane rattling the bar with a header, Lucas Moura testing Kasper Schmeichel with a fierce strike from the edge of the area and Davinson Sanchez heading just wide.
But Leicester took the lead against the run of play when Sergio Reguilon’s tackle on Ademola Lookman fell kindly into the path of Daka, who scooped the ball over the sprawling Hugo Lloris.
That sucker-punch seemed to knock the wind out of Tottenham for a little while, initially struggling to maintain their upward trajectory. The next big chance fell Leicester’s way when James Maddison’s strike produced a flying stop from Lloris.
Spurs nearly found a leveller at the end of a neat counter-attack when Oliver Skipp’s ball in behind escaped Schmeichel, but Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s shot was cleared off the line by Marc Albrighton.
And Tottenham were finally level seven minutes before the break when Harry Winks’ ball over the top was met by Kane, who sat Caglar Soyuncu down and emphatically picked his spot off the inside of the post.
Kane should have grabbed a brace moments later as Leicester were carved apart easily again, but sent his one-on-one effort into row Z.
Conte’s decision to bring on Matt Doherty for Emerson Royal at half-time looked inspired immediately after the interval, with the Irishman providing more width and balance in attack as Spurs continued their dominance, curling a shot just wide soon after his introduction.
Leicester’s best chances continued to come on the break, with Maddison stinging the palms of Lloris after a quick breakaway.
Skipp and Reguilon both squandered half-chances as Spurs continued to ramp up the pressure without finding the net.
But once again, Leicester hit Spurs against the run of play and re-took the lead through Maddison following a one-two with substitute Harvey Barnes, with his effort deflecting in off Japhet Tanganga.
Brendan Rodgers’ side defended resolutely, but were finally breached again through Bergwijn’s thumping strike in the last minute of stoppage time looked to have earned Spurs a point.
But Tottenham weren’t done there and almost immediately from the resulting kick-off, Bergwijn rounded Schmeichel to send the away end into raptures.
Schmeichel was on hand to save Leicester several times / Visionhaus/GettyImages
Kasper Schmeichel (GK) – 7/10 – Came up with a number of good stops to keep Leicester in the game.
Hamza Choudhury (CB) – 6/10 – Wasn’t even that impressive but he was still Leicester’s best centre-back by far. And he’s not even a centre-back.
Caglar Soyuncu (CB) – 2/10 – Constantly on skates. Slow as anything and embarrassed by Kane for Spurs’ equaliser.
Jannik Vestergaard (CB) – 3/10 – Just not very impressive at defending.
The match-winner / Clive Mason/GettyImages
Marc Albrighton (RWB) – 5/10 – Made a crucial block on the line in the first half but struggled to get into the game.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (CM) – 5/10 – Battled hard but that was pretty much it.
Youri Tielemans (CM) – 3/10 – Very wasteful and was given the runaround by Spurs’ midfield trio.
Luke Thomas (LWB) – 6/10 – Pretty much everything Leicester did well at either end centred around Thomas when he was on the pitch.
James Maddison (AM) – 8/10 – Troubled Spurs with his set pieces, delivery and shots at goal, eventually bagging one for himself.
Daka opened the scoring / Clive Mason/GettyImages
Patson Daka (CF) – 7/10 – Had very little to work with but was still a danger.
Ademola Lookman (CF) – 5/10 – Dropped deep to get involved but with little product.
James Justin (LWB, 53′ for Thomas) – 5/10 – Great to see such a promising player back after nearly a year out.
Harvey Barnes (CF, 75′ for Daka) – 7/10 – Instant impact with his assist for Maddison.
Boubakary Soumare (CM, 88′ for Dewsbury-Hall) – N/A
Not one of Lloris’ best games / Clive Mason/GettyImages
Hugo Lloris (GK) – 4/10 – Surprisingly good with his feet but was beaten far too easily for both goals.
Japhet Tanganga (CB) – 3/10 – Caught too high up the pitch for the first goal and generally didn’t inspire confidence.
Davinson Sanchez (CB) – 5/10 – Played fine in the middle of the backline in the continued absence of Eric Dier.
Ben Davies (CB) – 6/10 – His left-footedness allowed Spurs to carve easier routes out when playing from the back. A decent effort on his 250th game for Tottenham.
Winks was impressive / James Williamson – AMA/GettyImages
Emerson Royal (RWB) – 4/10 – Not as horrendous as he has been in 2022 but still didn’t offer much in attack or defence. Subbed at half-time.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (CM) – 6/10 – Pressed well and his energy made up for his technical deficiencies, but lost his runner for Leicester’s winner.
Harry Winks (CM) – 8/10 – Super assist for Kane and had joy picking the Leicester defence apart. Lost his concentration a couple of times off the ball, however.
Oliver Skipp (CM) – 7/10 – Thrived in a more free role, roaming forward and causing Leicester all sorts of problems.
Sergio Reguilon (LWB) – 6/10 – Didn’t cover himself in glory for the first goal but his pace and prowess were crucial to Conte’s system.
Kane looked sharp / Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/GettyImages
Lucas Moura (CF) – 5/10 – Did plenty of good work without having too much of a tangible impact on the game.
Harry Kane (CF) – 8/10 – 18 goals in 17 games vs Leicester and carried Spurs’ attacking load, but his efforts weren’t enough.
Matt Doherty (RWB, 46′ for Emerson) – 6/10 – Much more dangerous than Emerson.
Giovani Lo Celso (CM, 74′ for Winks) – 4/10
Steven Bergwijn (CF, 80′ for Reguilon) – 10/10 – Genuinely no more that he could have done tonight.
