West Brom vs Tottenham match report: Harry Kane double sees striker take season tally to 20 as Christian Eriksen strikes again

West Brom 0 Tottenham 3: Spurs get top gear at West Brom as Eriksen adds to his mid-week heroics while Kane continues to strengthen his growing reputation

Christian Eriksen scores a free-kick (Getty Images)

There was a bitter wind blowing inside the highest stadium in the country but it takes more than that to blow Mauricio Pochettino’s Tottenham off course. They survived a Sheffield blizzard on their way to winning a Capital One Cup semi-final in midweek and this victory was another test of mettle passed as they brushed aside a West Bromwich Albion side previously unbeaten under Tony Pulis.

This was Spurs’ sixth away win of the campaign – only Manchester City have managed more – and it lifted them, at least for 24 hours, into fifth place above neighbours Arsenal, who they face in the north London derby next Saturday.

Tottenham have now won six of their last eight league games and the clinical way they took control of this contest – scoring twice inside the opening 15 minutes – led a satisfied Pochettino to declare that, on current form, they can push on and claim that coveted fourth spot. Hailing their “amazing” and “aggressive” start, he said: “If we show what we showed today in this performance, maybe we have the possibility to get there, but we need to be consistent.”

It was yet another match featuring decisive performances from Christian Eriksen and Harry Kane. The latter comfortably overshadowed potential Spurs target Saido Berahino with his two goals, while Eriksen reversed his recent habits with the early breakthrough.

Since November the little Dane has hit vital late goals on four occasions yet here he needed six minutes. Claudio Yacob’s foul on Moussa Dembélé 25 yards from goal gave him a dead-ball opportunity and while his strike lacked the precision of his free-kick at Bramall Lane last Wednesday it still beat Ben Foster. On the quarter-hour, the home goalkeeper was beaten again as Kane stepped inside Andre Wisdom and flashed in a shot with such pace that it was past Foster before he could even react.

Spurs players swamp Christian Eriksen after he scores the opening goal (Getty Images)

If it was not Foster’s best afternoon’s work, his Spurs counterpart Hugo Lloris excelled when Albion came to life. The Frenchman made a brilliant fingertip save from James Morrison’s curling shot and then kept out Yacob’s effort at the end of an inventive five-man free-kick routine.

“To be fair their goalkeeper was absolutely fantastic,” said Pulis, who also saw Craig Dawson head a Morrison free-kick against the angle of post and crossbar before the break.

Kane scored twice in Saturday's 3-0 win over West Brom (Getty Images)

On a day where Emmanuel Adebayor did not even make Spurs’ 18-man squad, Kane underlined his growing importance by wrapping up the points as he sent Foster the wrong way from the spot after Kyle Walker’s cross had struck the arm of Joleon Lescott. It was Kane’s 20th goal this season and he would have had a hat-trick but for Foster tipping over his dipping free-kick. “It was not only him,” added Pochettino. “All the players showed character.”

Line-ups:

West Bromwich (4-4-1-1): Foster; Wisdom (Gardner, 61), McAuley, Dawson, Lescott; McManaman (Ideye, 60), Morrison (Dorrans, 88), Yacob, Brunt; Berahino; Anichebe.

Tottenham (4-2-3-1): Lloris, Walker, Fazio, Vertonghen, Rose; Dembélé (Chadli, 64), Mason (Stambouli, 74); Eriksen, Paulinho, Lamela; Kane (Soldado, 88).

Referee: Kevin Friend.

Man of the match: Eriksen (Tottenham).

Match rating: 6/10.