Gareth Bale and Harry Kane star as Tottenham put four past Crystal Palace

Matt Law
·20-min read
Harry Kane and Gareth Bale. - Richard Pelham /NMC Pool 
Harry Kane and Gareth Bale. - Richard Pelham /NMC Pool

‘Bale is back’ was the slogan Tottenham Hotspur excitedly pumped out on their social media channels when the forward returned to the club on loan from Real Madrid and it looks like the five-month wait for him to roll back the years may well be worth it.

This may not be the galloping Gareth Bale, who ended the careers of terrified right-backs, but this is once again the Gareth Bale who has stepped up just when Tottenham really need him.

Tottenham’s season was in danger of imploding when Bale was brought back into the starting line-up for the visit of Burnley. But three games and four goals from the 31-year-old later, and Spurs are back in the race for a top-four place.

Bale’s two goals against Crystal Palace meant he has scored six in six games and his latest brace came in his third start in a week. He lasted 69 minutes before being replaced by Erik Lamela, with head coach Jose Mourinho now counting on the man he seemed so reluctant to pick.

“I wouldn't have come if I didn't think I could contribute,” said Bale. “It's taken time, but that's the reality of football and my body. I feel good now, hopefully I can keep this form going.

Gareth Bale scores his second goal. - GETTY IMAGES
Gareth Bale scores his second goal. - GETTY IMAGES

“I'm feeling good. A lot of games are coming thick and fast so it's about recovering and getting ready for the next one.”

While opposition defences only used to have Bale to worry about back in his first spell at the club, they now have to somehow stop the double threat of him and Harry Kane.

Kane set-up two of Bale’s goals, cracked in a stunning strike of his own and headed Tottenham’s fourth, which meant Spurs reached 100 goals for the season in all competitions.

“It’s not bad for a very defensive team, for a very negative team,” said Mourinho, who has not forgotten the criticism he and his team were facing just a fortnight ago.

Bale was at the heart of all of Tottenham’s most dangerous moments in the first half and it was the Welshman who opened the scoring in the 25th minute.

Palace had done little wrong at the back until Luka Milivojevic was robbed of the ball inside his own half and the hosts took full advantage. It was Lucas Moura, back in ahead of Dele Alli, who stabbed the ball away from Milivojevic to Kane and the striker delivered the perfect low cross from the left for Bale to score.

Before opening the scoring, Bale had created a superb opportunity for Heung-Min Son with a delicious cross that the South Korean wastefully headed straight at Palace goalkeeper Vicente Guaita.

Jordan Ayew was booked for pulling back Bale, who turned creator once again in the 38th minute with another cross from the right that Sergio Reguilon volleyed wide at the back post.

Reguilon screamed at himself in frustration for missing and that annoyance ran throughout the Spurs team in first-half stoppage time, when they conceded a sloppy equaliser.

Christian Benteke celebrates his superb finish. - PA
Christian Benteke celebrates his superb finish. - PA

Palace had not managed a single shot on target before Christian Benteke scored his team’s first League goal away at Tottenham since December 2004 by climbing above Toby Alderweireld to meet Milivojevic’s cross.

Wilfried Zaha had returned to the substitutes’ bench, following five games out with a hamstring problem, and the forward went through a half-time warm-up session before replacing Eberechi Eze for the second half.

But it was Bale who reasserted his authority on the game just four minutes after the restart, as he started and finished the move from which Spurs regained the lead.

Bale did brilliantly to ride a challenge, hold on to the ball and find Reguilon out on the left with a superb cross-field pass. The left-back’s cross was headed back across goal by Kane to Bale and he easily beat Guaita with a close-range header.

Zaha had barely touched the ball and yet, just seven minutes after he had been sent on, Palace conceded again and suddenly had a mountain to climb.

Bale was involved again, passing the ball to Matt Doherty, but this time Tottenham’s third goal owed to the brilliance of Kane, who curled a wonderful 25-yard shot past a helpless Guaita.

Zaha hit the post from 20 yards, but it was Kane who added to the scoreline with a close-range header following excellent work from Lamela and Son.

Palace manager Roy Hodgson said: “As Harry Kane said to me after the game, they took their chances very well. We were heavily punished by the quality of their goals. We’ve got to lick those wounds and any lessons, we’ve got a week to work on it.”

09:17 PM

That's all from me

But read Matt Law's report for a full recap of this evening's events.

09:09 PM

Tottenham were superb tonight

Palace were not too bad at all, but Spurs' attack was excellent. Kane, Bale, Son, Moura and Lamela were all excellent.

Good signs for Spurs as they put themselves in a position to compete for the top four.

09:07 PM

FULL TIME: Spurs 4 Palace 1

Vinicius holds the ball up well, allowing his side to mount a final attack. Reguilon bursts forward but the ball runs away from him. It comes to Moura who gets to the byline and fires in a low cross. No one meets it, however. That was on a plate.

And that is that.

09:05 PM

90+3 min: Spurs 4 Palace 1

Kane is named man of the match. Fair enough. Bale cannot have been too far behind...

09:03 PM

90 min: Spurs 4 Palace 1

There will be five minutes of added time. Zaha beats Doherty who trips him and is booked.

09:01 PM

88 min: Spurs 4 Palace 1

Zaha breaks down the left but now he is caught offside. He has looked a little short of match fitness, understandably.

08:59 PM

86 min: Spurs 4 Palace 1

Ayew beats a defender with some neat footwork. He rolls a through ball into the Spurs box but Lloris wins the race to the ball.

Mateta then breaks in behind, but he is eventually ruled offside after leaving Sanchez for dead.

08:55 PM

83 min: Spurs 4 Palace 1

Lamela and Moura combine nicely before the former loses the ball with a big touch. At the other end, Zaha breaks into the box and wins his side a corner.

08:52 PM

80 min: Spurs 4 Palace 1

Spurs have been good tonight and they deserved their lead. The front four have all been excellent tonight, including Lamela since he came on for Bale.

Kane is off, with the game won, replaced by Vinicius.

08:50 PM

GOOOOOOOAAAAAAL! (Kane) Spurs 4 Palace 1

Lamela breaks into the box again. He dinks a cross to Son who volleys it back across goal to Kane who taps it in. Well worked.

Var is having a look... Son passed it backwards, just! Goal stands.

08:47 PM

75 min: Spurs 3 Palace 1

Benteke is coming off, replaced by Mateta. Lamela breaks into the Palace box, bending a shot towards the far corner but his effort is well blocked.

Tottenham come again, but Reguilon overcooks his cross, sending it straight out for a goal kick.

08:45 PM

72 min: Spurs 3 Palace 1

Palace are having a good spell, applying pressure to Spurs who are holding firm for now.

08:42 PM

70 min: Spurs 3 Palace 1

Zaha beats Sanchez who recovers well to make a strong tackle. The ball falls to Zaha who hits one from outside the box with his left foot, the ball striking the post!

Sissoko and Lamela on for Winks and Bale - no hat-trick for him today...

08:40 PM

68 min: Spurs 3 Palace 1

Ayew battles down the left wing, earning his side a corner. Spurs clear once more. Bale unleashes Reguilon down the left with a deft pass but a good sliding tackle puts the ball out for a throw-in.

08:38 PM

66 min: Spurs 3 Palace 1

Schlupp is on for Palace, replacing Townsend. Spurs defend the corner well, clearing long.

08:37 PM

64 min: Spurs 3 Palace 1

Son is down after a collision, as is Riedewald. Both look fine to continue. Riedewald then wins the ball in Spurs half, picking off a Moura pass. Palace cannot do anything with it, however.

They mount another attack. The ball is lofted into the box towards Zaha, Doherty recovers well, putting it behind for a corner.

08:34 PM

61 min: Spurs 3 Palace 1

Spurs win a corner. Bale takes, whipping it into the box. Kane wins the header but directs it wide of the post. Lovely ball in.

08:31 PM

59 min: Spurs 3 Palace 1

Another cross comes into the Palace box. It falls to Reguilon who can only stab an effort into the side netting.

Zaha is caught offside as he tries to get in behind the Spurs defence.

08:30 PM

What an effort from the striker!

08:29 PM

56 min: Spurs 3 Palace 1

Son works some space on the edge of the Palace box but can only bend his shot over the bar. Palace attack. The ball is chipped into the box and Benteke wins the header but his effort is blocked by Kane.

08:26 PM

54 min: Spurs 3 Palace 1

Riedewald fires off a speculative shot for Palace but nothing comes of it. Spurs well on top in a matter of minutes.

08:25 PM

GOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAL! (Kane) Spurs 3 Palace 1

Goal of the season contender. The ball is rolled to Kane on the right hand side of the edge of the box. He curls first time perfectly into the far top corner. Unstoppable. What a goal!

08:22 PM

GOOOOOOOOAAAAAAL! (Bale) Spurs 2 Palace 1

Bale has another! He sprays the ball wide to Reguilon who crosses into the box. Kane heads it back across goal and Bale heads it home! Lovely team goal.

08:20 PM

47 min: Spurs 1 Palace 1

Moura breaks down the right and is wiped out by Riedewald who is booked.

08:18 PM

The second half is underway!

Wilfried Zaha is on for Palace! Eze off. Roy Hodgson is going for the win...

Spurs get us restarted.

08:10 PM

Christian Benteke enjoyed his goal!

08:03 PM

Spurs have been the better team...

But the score is level. Spurs deserved their lead but Palace had one good spell in the half and made it count. Sets up the second half very nicely.

Bale has been excellent for Tottenham.

08:02 PM

HALF TIME: Spurs 1 Palace 1

And that is that. Decent half of football, that.

08:02 PM

GOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAL! (Benteke) Spurs 1 Palace 1

Palace come again. Milivojevic puts the ball perfectly on the head of Benteke who puts into the back of the net. What a goal! Top header from the striker.

08:00 PM

45 min: Spurs 1 Palace 0

Ayew wins a foul in a dangerous area for a cross. Good little spell for Palace, this. Townsend takes it and Lloris punches it away.

There will be two minutes of added time.

07:59 PM

44 min: Spurs 1 Palace 0

Spurs clear the corner and Son is fouled as they attempt to counter.

07:57 PM

42 min: Spurs 1 Palace 0

Cahill cannot make a clean contact on the ball and Spurs clear. That was the away side's first attack in a good while...

Townsend sends in a low cross but it is cleared. A second ball comes in, winning a corner off Sanchez.

07:55 PM

40 min: Spurs 1 Palace 0

The ball is lofted over the Spurs defence towards van Aanholt. Sanchez does well to get back and put the ball behind for a corner.

07:52 PM

37 min: Spurs 1 Palace 0

Kane and Bale stand over it. It is from the left side of the box. Kane curls it into the face of Ayew, the ball ricocheting towards Moura who cannot get anything on it. Should have been a corner but goal kick is awarded.

Spurs attack again. Bale cuts onto his left, crossing into the box. Reguilon attempts an ambitious scissor kick which goes well wide.

07:50 PM

35 min: Spurs 1 Palace 0

Ayew fouls Reguilon who was trapped in the corner in his own half.

Moura beats three players with some crisp footwork, as he approaches the box he is tripped by Cahill. The defender is booked. The free kick is right on the edge of the box... who will take?

07:47 PM

Bale has certainly found some form...

07:47 PM

32 min: Spurs 1 Palace 0

Winks plays a crisp pass out to Bale. He beats van Aaanholt, sending a cross to the back post which is well claimed by Guaita.

07:44 PM

29 min: Spurs 1 Palace 0

Bale is hauled down on half-way by Ayew. The counter was on and he is booked for the challenge.

07:42 PM

27 min: Spurs 1 Palace 0

Palace had struggled to get out of their half all match and it cost them. Spurs' pressing has been excellent so far.

07:41 PM

GOOOOOAAAAAAL! (Bale) Spurs 1 Palace 0

Bale scores again! Moura wins the ball in the Palace half finding Kane who breaks into the box and squares it to Bale who has a tap in. Easy, far too easy.

07:40 PM

24 min: Spurs 0 Palace 0

Doherty whips in a cross to the front post which is headed clear by Kouyate. Spurs come again, finding Doherty in space once more. His cross is won by Son, but his head back across goal cannot find a team-mate.

07:36 PM

22 min: Spurs 0 Palace 0

Tottenham press Palace back once more, forcing a long ball up the field. It falls to Townsend who almost picks out Benteke in the box, with Lloris beating him to the ball.

07:35 PM

20 min: Spurs 0 Palace 0

Moura commits a foul pressing in the Palace half. The away side are struggling to maintain any possession.

07:32 PM

17 min: Spurs 0 Palace 0

Spurs have been the better of the two sides so far. Bale and Son looking lively, Kane has not had much of the ball yet however.

Reguilon cuts onto his right foot, sending a speculative cross into the box. It is headed away with ease.

07:30 PM

15 min: Spurs 0 Palace 0

Benteke breaks down the right wing but Alderweireld gets back well, dispossessing his compatriot.

07:27 PM

12 min: Spurs 0 Palace 0

Ward is alright and will continue. Kane is fouled. The free kick is taken short and Son releases Bale. Van Aanholt closes him down well, forcing him back to his defence.

07:24 PM

9 min: Spurs 0 Palace 0

Ward jumps high and is wiped out by Doherty who backed into him. He stays down and play is stopped.

07:22 PM

7 min: Spurs 0 Palace 0

Son is fouled in Spurs' half. Tottenham launch an attack, Son spreads it to Doherty. He rolls Bale into the box, the Welshman beating two defenders before crossing back to Son who heads it straight at the keeper. He should have scored! Class from Bale.

07:19 PM

4 min: Spurs 0 Palace 0

Son, Bale and Kane link up nicely, patiently passing the ball on the edge of the Palace box. Kane chips a pass to Reguilon who cannot quite bring the ball under control. He wins it back, laying off Moura but he lets the ball run, assuming someone was behind him.

07:17 PM

2 min: Spurs 0 Palace 0

Palace start brightly, spreading the ball from side to side. Eze loses possession, allowing Moura to sprint up the pitch. He is tripped by Riedewald, free kick on half-way.

07:15 PM

Here we go!

Crystal Palace get us underway.

07:11 PM

The players are out onto the pitch!

Not long to go now...

07:06 PM

A huge boost for Palace - they can unleash Wilfried Zaha from the bench tonight

Roy Hodgson says Zaha could "play quite a lot of time" tonight, if required...

06:57 PM

Son vs Palace = goals

Tottenham’s Son Heung-Min has been directly involved in six goals in seven Premier League starts against Crystal Palace, scoring five times and assisting once. He only has more Premier League goals against Southampton (8) than he does against Palace (5).

06:47 PM

A reminder of how the table looks ahead of this evening's clash

With Liverpool losing earlier, Spurs remain right in the hunt for the top four. For Palace, they look safe but the three points earned by Scott Parker's side might just have put a hint of pressure on them...

06:37 PM

Spurs tend to enjoy playing against Palace...

Tottenham are unbeaten in their last 11 Premier League meetings with Crystal Palace (W9 D2), their longest ongoing run against any side currently in the division.

06:27 PM

Dele Alli dropped to bench

Dele Alli drops to the bench in one of three changes made by Jose Mourinho after Thursday's 1-0 win at Fulham.

The England international made only his second Premier League start of the season in midweek but is listed among the substitutes alongside Ben Davies and Tanguy Ndombele, with Sergio Reguilon, Harry Winks and Lucas Moura recalled.

Palace are able to welcome Wilfried Zaha back into the squad after a hamstring injury but he is only on the bench.

06:16 PM

Team news is in!

03:34 PM

Good evening, Sergio Reguilon has had an interesting start to life in English football

Sergio Reguilon’s introduction to England has included cricket, language lessons and now being at the centre of a row between TV pundits. Welcome to the Premier League.

The Spanish left-back was the case in point when Jamie Redknapp and Roy Keane were getting angry with each other while assessing Tottenham Hotspur’s squad minus their match-winning attacking partnership of Harry Kane and Son Heung-min.

Redknapp suggests Reguilon would be one player who would get into the top teams, which Keane eventually agrees with after asking why Real Madrid would let him go last summer. The answer was that they needed to balance the books, and had Marcelo and Ferland Mendy in his position.

“This is his opinion, but for me, we have a lot of top class players that can play in every team,” said Reguilon.

“For me, we have the best players, that’s my opinion. But thank you Jamie for defending me. It was so funny. He was really angry. I watched that and smiled a lot.”

Redknapp’s frustration may have something to do with Jose Mourinho’s team falling short of expectations at times this season. They face Crystal Palace today in the return fixture from December when Spurs were top of the Premier League.

There have been too many dropped points since and they face a battle to get in to the Champions League places, while Keane’s underlying theme to his criticism is that they rely on Kane and Son, with little other support.

Spurs do have Dele Alli coming back into the picture after being the latest player Mourinho has been at loggerheads with during his career.

Some, like Tanguy Ndombele, find a way back and Alli has taken small steps in the last fortnight.

Gareth Bale is also finding form. He and Reguilon shared a private jet from Madrid to London when Spurs made their summer move for the pair.

“Gareth is, for me, a top player. Now I think this is the best performances because his body is different. He needs more training, more work to be fit, but now is his best moment in Tottenham,” said Reguilon, whose arrival was low profile compared to Bale’s return seven years after leaving for the Santiago Bernabéu. Yet the full-back settled into the season much more quickly, and was soon a key part of the team that reached the summit.

Mourinho condemned Reguilon for a Christmas party with team-mates, breaking coronavirus rules. His frustration was compounded by his festive gift to a player who was in a new country on his own. “An amazing gift – a Portuguese piglet, which is amazing for Portuguese and Spanish,” Mourinho said.

He has returned from a month out through injury to help push for the top-four places, helped by victories over Burnley and Fulham last week.

“Now the feeling is that we can arrive in the top four in the league because we have a very good squad, and we try to win every match,” he said.

“We want to go match to match, three points by three points and by the end of the season we can be in the top four. We know that it’s difficult, but I think we have the players to get it.”

His integration at Spurs has seen him try indoor cricket in the gym at the club’s training ground, although he says he does not understand the rules.

Taking English lessons twice a week has also filled his time during lockdown, and he looks back at his first year with no regrets.

“Why did I join? Because in the summer I had a big decision and with all the clubs on the table, I chose Tottenham. Because their proposal, the team, the league, the club, the city – there are too many factors that said yes,” he said. “Because of Gareth also.

“And the gaffer for me was very important. And the personnel at the club, with (chairman, Daniel) Levy and with Jose and everything – it was very important.”

By Mike McGrath

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