After an impressive Europa League showing in midweek, Sunday saw Tottenham reinvigorate matters on a domestic front and after putting Burnley to the sword, it will have given their hopes of European qualification a real shot in the arm.
With Gareth Bale being the standout star in Spurs’ dominant performance against Wolfsberger last Wednesday, there was an obvious clamour for the Welsh international to start against Burnley and after being given such an opportunity, he certainly did not disappoint.
If there was one thing that manager Jose Mourinho and his players needed from this game, it was an early goal and with Bale on hand to open the scoring in the second minute, their collective prayers were very much answered.
With the Burnley defence flat-footed, all that was left, was for Bale to slot home and with England international Nick Pope beaten in the Clarets’ goal, Tottenham could breathe a huge and early sigh of relief.
While such was their more relaxed nature, that they were quickly spraying balls from one end of the field to the other and that is exactly how they doubled their advantage within the first fifteen minutes of the game.
This time it was Bale who turned provider and after finding Harry Kane out on the left with an exquisite raking pass, the England forward then launched a fantastic effort past the already ailing Pope.
With the hosts now 2-0 in front, they could have relaxed and shut up shop for the afternoon, especially with Burnley offering little in terms of a goal threat. However, this was a Tottenham side that wanted to go for the jugular.
Something that was certainly achieved just after the half hour and although the inclusion of Lucas Moura may have raised some eyebrows, the Brazilian made a strong case for selection by making it 3-0.
The 28-year-old was given the nod over Dele Alli and although the latter was on the scoresheet last Wednesday, there are still question marks over his ability to do the job in the cut and thrust of the Premier League.
Then again, there were no such questions regarding the performance of Lucas Moura and if the former PSG star can just offer a little bit more consistency, then he will certainly give Jose Mourinho something of a selection headache.
That goal was all but job done in terms of the overall outcome, although the best was perhaps saved for last and with Gareth Bale adding his second of the encounter, he bookended Tottenham’s four goals in total.
Once again, it was Heung-min Son who was the architect, as after an incisive run towards the Burnley area, he laid the ball into the path of Bale and without even breaking stride, he slammed the ball home to make it 4-0.
An emphatic win for Tottenham and one that suggests that their campaign is far from over. Can this be the catalyst for the club to finish in the top-four, time will certainly tell. However, if they can play like this with more regularity, they will definitely send a warning shot to their nearest rivals.
