As always, it was easy to read between the lines, to feel the emotion of the moment, the frustration, possibly the anger. Because again, for the sixth game in a row, the Spurs had not appeared in the first half. Kane said the gist of Tuesday night’s messages included the need for more aggression and intensity. With Antonio Conte stuck in the stands as he served a ban for his red card against Sporting last week – the manager has gone through all sorts of inner turmoil – it’s been left to his assistants Cristian Stellini and Ryan Mason to give direction. The captain, Hugo Lloris, too. During the life of a season there are always turning points, or at least the desire to locate them, and this is certainly like one. Spurs brought the aggression on the restart, pressing higher, making runs in front of the ball, taking charge and playing like they meant it. The game turned when Clément Lenglet glanced home Ivan Perisic’s free-kick in the 54th minute and despite late concerns, Spurs deserved the win and progress as group leaders, which ensured Pierre-Emile’s last-gasp finish Højbjerg. Had they lost, they would have been pushed into the Europa League. Clément Lenglet equalizes in Marseille to start Spurs’ comeback. Photo: Chris Ricco/Uefa/Getty Images Again, radical turnarounds after focused half-time talks have become the new normal at Spurs. They beat Everton in the middle of last month after being held to a 0-0 draw and after being completely blown away by Manchester United, they almost got something against Newcastle after trailing 2-0 at half-time. They came back to draw against Sporting, having gone 1-0 down at half-time, and were unlucky not to win before coming back to beat Bournemouth on Saturday, having gone 1-0 down at the break and then 2-0 down. The problem was a failure to balance caution with risk, and Spurs found it particularly difficult on a wild night in Marseille when they knew a draw would be enough to qualify, likely as runners-up. It’s often said that the end of the first half is the worst time to concede, but Chancelle Beba’s 45th-minute header may have strangely been good for Spurs. “It’s always tough coming away from home in a tough atmosphere, knowing the draw is going for you,” Kane said. “It’s never easy to come out and go full throttle because you can end up 2-0 down in 10 minutes and then be in a hole. “We have to find a balance between throwing and pressing. Right now, we’re just falling and sitting too deep. In the second half we went man-to-man and took a bit more risk. We just have to find a little more patience when we’re down and then be able to get out of that deep block and push. It’s what we’re trying to do, but we’re just not executing it well enough.” Kane spoke of how there was no panic at half-time, partly because the team had been there before and more often than he would have liked. He stressed it was vital not to go 2-0 down like they did against Newcastle – we learned lessons from that, he said – and there was a point for Spurs’ extraordinary resilience, a legacy of the late and much-loved fitness coach. Gian Piero Ventrone. “We’re a team that always feels like we’re going to have chances, especially in the second half of games when teams tire,” Kane said. “Fitness-wise, we’re a very strong team, so we feel we can always be strong in the second half.” It sounded a little reductive on one level, and even evoked the memory of Muhammad Ali’s rope-a-dope strategy. Are Spurs giving their opponents a false sense of security by luring them out? It’s game management but not as we know it. Start your evenings with the Guardian’s view of the world of football Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Most importantly, it worked against Marseille and Kane can feel a spring in his step ahead of the World Cup in Qatar, which starts on November 20. He will carry England’s hopes as captain and talisman. Kane was excellent in the second half against Marseille, even though he knew he should have put one of his chances away. You could feel it from his sad smiles. It was a strong outing, he got his team up the pitch, linked the game with great passes and drove into the box. Pierre-Emile Højbjerg celebrates with Harry Kane after scoring a late winner for Spurs that they almost deserved. Photo: Tottenham Hotspur FC/Getty Images “It was really important [to reach the last 16] just before the World Cup,” he said. “If we had gone out it would have been a real sting because you know you come back from the World Cup and you’re playing the Europa League and it’s just not the same feeling.” Kane returned the night before the draw in Marseille when local ultras set off fireworks over Spurs’ hotel in an attempt to disrupt them. They exploded at 1.30 and 04.30. “We expected it,” he said. “We were told there might be fireworks. I woke up on the first batch but on the second batch – I was fast asleep thankfully.” Opponents have been warned. If they’re going to put shots on Kane, they better make them count. Because he will come back. The Spurs will be back.
