Tottenham Hotspur couldn’t find a way to goal in a scoreless draw with Eintracht Frankfurt in Germany on Tuesday, leaving their UEFA Champions League fate in the middle of a muddled Group D.
[ LIVE: Champions League scores, stats ]
Spurs had 56% of the ball but the game featured only two shots on target each and was utterly forgettable for those not in attendance to sing and take in the Waldstadion atmosphere.
Harry Kane couldn’t convert either of two glorious chances and Spurs failed to manufacture much else, but will feel more than comfortable with the idea of beating Eintracht in North London next week
[ MORE: How to watch Premier League in USA ]
What we learned from Eintracht Frankfurt vs Tottenham
Someone freeze time so Harry Kane can rest: Tottenham’s star striker looks like a man who could use a refresh. Since the start of September, Kane has played 270 out of 270 minutes in the UEFA Champions League, 180 out of 180 minutes for England, and 708 out of 720 minutes in the Premier League. Yes, big time players play most of their teams’ minutes. And yes, Kane is the Premier League’s second-leading scorer. But the idea of Tottenham’s depth should just be to rotate Heung-min Son, Richarlison, and Dejan Kulusevski a bit.
Tottenham’s knockout round berth not a fait accompli, but this is alright: Spurs have now taken four of nine points from Group D, beating Marseille at home and losing to Sporting Lisbon in Portugal. The group is congested with three points separating first-place Sporting Lisbon and last-place OM, but Spurs are one of two teams with a pair of home games left on their docket and that gives them a strong chance to reach the knockout rounds.
How to watch Eintracht Frankfurt vs Tottenham live, stream link and start time
Kick off: 3pm ET, TuesdayTV Channel: TUDN, Paramount+Online: Updates via NBCSports.com
Key pregame storylines
Group D remains eminently winnable for Spurs, who have three points from their first two games. Sporting sit top of the group on six, but four games remain, including the return fixture in north London on Oct. 26. Eintracht Frankfurt have thus far beaten Marseille (away) and taken a hammering by the Portuguese (home), leaving their two most difficult fixtures (Tottenham and Sporting away) for the second half of the group stage.
In-form players to keep an eye on
Despite some (minor) frustrations over Tottenham’s rather defensive style of play under Conte, it’s worth noting they’ve only failed to score once all season (the loss to Sporting). Harry Kane leads the way in the Premier League with seven goals, including one against Arsenal, on the heels of Son Heung-min’s hat trick against the Foxes prior to the international break. Finally off the mark for the season and locked into a starting spot for the time being with Dejan Kulusevski battling a thigh injury. Richarlison scored his first two goals for Tottenham in the home win over Marseille, but the Brazilian has since gone cold without a goal or assist in three straight games (all starts).
Tottenham team news, injuries, lineup options
OUT: Dejan Kulusevski (thigh), Lucas Moura (achilles)