Tottenham began life after Harry Kane with an exciting draw against Brentford on the first weekend of the Premier League season.
Kane’s transfer from Tottenham Hotspur to Bayern Munich was completed on Saturday, and goals from Christian Romero and Emerson Royal won a point for new Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou on Sunday.
Brentford, who started the season without talisman Ivan Toney, took the lead via Yoane Wissa after Bryan Mbeumo’s penalty equalised Romero’s opening.
Spurs have now lost all three games at the Gtech Community Stadium, where kickoff was delayed by six minutes due to a water supply issue.
Argentina defender Romero scored the goal with a precise header from newcomer James Madison’s powerful free-kick.
It was Romero’s final contribution, as he was removed as a precaution by Postecoglou after appearing to complain of a blow to the head during the celebration.
The Bees regrouped and gained a penalty after Spurs’ new captain Son Heung-min pulled down Mathias Jensen, which Mbuemo converted to extend his top-flight goal streak to four games.
Wissa then took advantage of Rico Henry’s blazing run down the left flank, side-footing the cutback past Guglielmo Vicario with a deflection off Micky van de Ven’s boot to dampen their debuts.
Royal took the lead with a smooth finish in the fifth minute of extra time at the end of an exciting first half.
No Toney, no problems
Thomas Frank’s team is aware that they will be without vital forward Toney until mid-January after he was suspended for eight months for violating Football Association betting regulations.
The England attacker finished third in the Premier League last season, behind Manchester City’s Erling Haaland and Kane, but the club is not missing him.
Brentford won four of the five games they played without Toney last season, and they have two capable attackers at this level in Mbeumo and Wissa.
Wissa deflected the ball over the line, but not with the cleanest shot of his career, while Mbuemo took his penalty with panache, wrong-footing Guglielmo Vicario.
If Mbuemo and Wissa are the finishers, Henry is a potent provider, as he demonstrated multiple times with his searing pace to torture Royal.
He performed superbly to beat his man and find Mbuemo at the far post, with the striker unable to deflect the ball past Vicario from close range, as well as gliding on to his own touch past Royal to cut the ball back for Wissa’s goal.
Richarlison struggles in the central role
The most crucial aspect of any squad is its ability to score goals, and Kane’s departure will worry Spurs supporters.
With 280 goals in 435 appearances, Kane exits the Premier League as Tottenham’s all-time leading scorer.
He leaves large shoes to fill, but in the immediate term, Brazil forward Richarlison appears prepared to respond to Postecoglou’s request for goals.
Unfortunately for the Spurs and their fans, Richarlison cut a solitary figure, which did little to alleviate their anxieties. The attacker touched the ball only 16 times in a quiet first half in which Spurs controlled 66% of possession.
Romero was the only Spurs outfielder to have fewer touches (10) before being replaced in the 14th minute.
Maddison, who joined Spurs from Leicester in the summer, tried to roll the ball through early on, but Richarlison was pushed out of the way and failed to pose a danger.
In the second half, the identical combination hooked up again, but this time Richarlison clutched at the opportunity and fired straight at Burnley’s £11 million summer addition, Mark Flekken, in goal.
Time will tell if Richarlison is the Spurs’ long-term replacement for Kane.
