Tottenham defeated Brighton to bolster their position in the top three of the Premier League with the help of Harry Kane’s eighth goal of the campaign.
The English striker’s crouching first-half header was sufficient to secure a victory, keeping Spurs third and three points off of Manchester City, who are now in first place.
Brighton, who could have tied the visitors for first place in the standings with a victory, got off to a poor start but eventually took control of the contest and had several chances to tie it up before halftime.
As halftime drew near, Lewis Dunk glanced a header just over the crossbar, and Solly March swung a low effort just past of the target.
But in the second half both sides struggled to break each other down, although Kane should have put the game out of sight when he turned his marker but dragged his shot wide, while Danny Welbeck swept a good chance off target for the hosts.
A late injury to Kane took some of the shine off the win as the England striker went off after getting caught on the back of his foot, but he was able to walk off the pitch and confirmed after the game that it was “just a knock”.
The win means Tottenham have 20 points from nine games, while Brighton is sixth on 14 points.
