Premier League

BRENTFORD 2 (Mbeumo 27 pen, Wissa 36)
TOTTENHAM 2 (Romero 11, Royal 45+4)

THE Ange era got up and running this afternoon (Sunday) with a decent away performance, but obvious questions remain over who can win games like these now Harry Kane isn’t around to pop up with some difference making-magic.

Tottenham began life after Kane with an entertaining 2-2 draw away at Brentford courtesy of first-half goals from Cristian Romero and Emerson Royal. Spurs showed plenty of intent – but lacked that extra bit of Kane-like quality to find the winner.

Tottenham dominated a Brentford side with an excellent home record, enjoying 70 per cent of the ball – and fought back from being 2-1 down after conceding a potentially morale-sapping penalty and an own-goal.

New Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou said after the game that his players were reacting to a different style of football well, but were a work in progress and needed to be braver in front of goal.

The Premier League debutante in the dugout added: “I am pleased with the effort. Considering everything that was going on out there, we equipped ourselves well and didn’t let the game away from us. When you concede a penalty and an own-goal, you can feel sorry for yourself.”

Postecoglou also praised a midfield trio of James Maddison, Oliver Skipp and Yves Bissouma, who looked inventive and solid. He said: “We controlled the game, but were not the threat in the final third as we’d like.

“It’s not about possession, it is about being a threat. At times we could have been more direct, forced the issue a little bit more. I thought we could have been more creative.

“I want them to play with a little bit more freedom. We are trying to change the way we play and because of the information the players are taking on board, this was always a starting point. They are still in learning mode. In time they will improve.”

Postecoglou’s bright reading of the game was in stark contrast to both preceding managers at Spurs – and the way the side was set-up also offers thrills-and-spills football of a type not seen for some time.

Maddison was given a forward-looking, free role to knit things together: a midfield creator, a string-puller not seen since Christian Eriksen left – and a role that Kane had developed as his own for want of a teammate better at picking out the pass.

It was Maddison’s excellent delivery that created the first goal for Postecoglou’s reign on 11 minutes. He pinged it on a plate for Romero to rise and head home.

In the celebrations, Romero’s teammates immediately pointed to the bench – Romero had moments earlier gone down after a clash of heads with Bryan Mbeumo. Romero insisted he was okay to continue, but Postecoglou thought otherwise and subbed him for Davinson Sanchez.

Tottenham’s lead, however, did not last long. New captain Heung-Min Son was judged to have clipped Mathias Jensen in the box. Mbeumo gave Guglielmo Vicario the eyes and sent the Spurs keeper the wrong way.

A second goal for the home side came after Royal was beaten on the flank by Rico Henry: his ball found Yoane Wissa, whose snapshot took a deflection off Micky van de Ven.

Royal was to make amends in clinical fashion as added time was played out at the end of the first-half. Maddison forced the issue, and the ball fell for the right-back to smash home.

Spurs did what they could to find the winner in the second-half, playing the game for long periods in Brentford’s half. But despite the effort, the Harry-shaped-hole meant that effort lacked a match-winner.

A battling away point isn’t to be sniffed at, but it is impossible not to wonder how well this side would have fared if Kane had stayed. Spurs simply did not have the firepower to snatch all three points.

Brentford: Flekken, Hickey (Roerslev, 72), Collins, Pinnock, Ajer (Jorgensen, 84), Henry, Jensen (Damsgaard, 49), Norgaard (Baptiste, 73), Janelt, Mbeumo, Wissa (Schade, 72)
Substitutes not used: Yarmolyuk, Dasilva, Strakosha, Lewis-Potter,

Tottenham: Vicario, Royal, Romero (Sanchez, 14), van de Ven. Udogie, Skipp (Sarr, 75), Bissouma, Kulusevski, Maddison, Son (Perisic, 75), Richarlison
Substitutes not used: Austin, Hojbjerg, Lo Celso, Porro, Solomon, Davies