Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

As it happenedended1488888300

Tottenham vs Stoke - as it happened: Harry Kane leads the way as Potters are swept aside

Re-live all the Premier League action live from White Hart Lane

Sam Dymond
Sunday 26 February 2017 13:34 GMT
Comments
Kane celebrates his first goal for Spurs
Kane celebrates his first goal for Spurs (Getty)

Tottenham Hotspur can ill-afford a slip at White Hart Lane with Chelsea 11 points clear at the top, while breathing down their necks are Arsenal, Liverpool and in-form Manchester United.

Stoke have taken only two points from a possible 14 against the top six sides this season but it remains to be seen how Spurs will be affected by playing for 51 minutes with 10 men against Gent on Thursday.

At this stage last year, Tottenham were chasing Leicester for the title but now they are involved in a fierce battle to finish in the top four in order to qualify for the Champions League.

Follow live updates on our blog below...

Please allow a moment for the blog to load.

Team news

Tottenham Hotspur (3-5-2-1): Lloris, Dier, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Walker, Wanyama, Dembele, Davies, Alli, Eriksen, Kane.
Subs: Son, Janssen, Vorm, Trippier, Sissoko, Wimmer, Winks.

Stoke: Grant, Bardsley, Shawcross, Martins Indi, Pieters, Whelan, Adam, Sobhi, Allen, Arnautovic, Crouch.
Subs: Muniesa, Berahino, Afellay, Diouf, Cameron, Imbula, Given.

Referee: Jonathan Moss (County Durham)

1488120937

64 mins: Inswinging free-kicks are causing Stoke all kinds of problems in their own 18-yard box. Formerly, their bread and button, the away defence are again all over the place as Eriksen launches his latest into the mix. The ball falls invitingly for Eric Dier but he gets his angles wrong, allowing Stoke to clear and counter.

On the break at pace, Arnautovic escapes from Dembele inside the area but his final ball is squirmed behind for a corner.

Sam Dymond26 February 2017 14:55
1488121013

67 mins: Jan Vertonghen goes off and Kevin Wimmer takes one step closer to doing similar. First, the Belgian - still recovering from injury - is substituted for Harry Winks before the Austrian defender is yellow carded for chopping down Arnautovic.

Sam Dymond26 February 2017 14:56
1488121258

72 mins: "Stoke City, it's happening again," sing the Tottenham fans. The grammar isn't exactly spot on, but the sentiment is certainly one we can agree with.

Sam Dymond26 February 2017 15:00
1488121468

76 mins: Kyle Walker does brilliantly in dribbling his way into the box. Kyle Walker does terribly to slicing a shot wide of the near post. I believe that's called Kyle Walker in a nutshell.

Sam Dymond26 February 2017 15:04
1488121859

80 mins: Wondering exactly how much he can get away with, Shawcross decides to flick a dropping ball inside the box off the head of Wanyama with his hand. Jonathan Moss waves the claims way with a look that infers he only gives blatant penalties if the result is still in the balance.

Sam Dymond26 February 2017 15:10
1488122095

85 mins: There goes Harry Kane, three goals and an assist to his name. The striker is replaced with a few minutes remaining by Heung-Min Son. As he departs, he accept the admiration of the home fans, his manager and his teammates on the bench. Soon he will be accepting the matchball too.

Sam Dymond26 February 2017 15:14
1488122272

89 mins: Just as I was typing how this game is petering out, Alli bursts into the box and nearly slips a fifth through the legs of Grant. 

Sam Dymond26 February 2017 15:17
1488122355

90 mins: Here's one of the unwritten rules of football: if a team is being thrashed, display just one minute of added on time and then blow early anyway. Forget the six second half substitutions and injury to Kevin Wimmer.

Sam Dymond26 February 2017 15:19
1488122365

FULL TIME - TOTTENHAM 4 STOKE 0:

Sam Dymond26 February 2017 15:19
1488122617
Sam Dymond26 February 2017 15:23

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in