The Premier League survival hopes of Tottenham were dealt a devastating late blow as Georginio Rutter scored a 95th-minute equalizer for European hopefuls Brighton.
Tottenham were on track to break their frantic winless league run, which had reached 15 games, and climb out of the bottom three when Xavi Simons curled in with 13 minutes remaining.
Instead, Roberto de Zerbi’s side is still one point from safety with only five games remaining—and their situation could deteriorate in the coming days with relegation opponents Nottingham Forest and West Ham set to play after Leeds United already distanced themselves from trouble.
That came after second-half replacement Rutter scored with five minutes of stoppage time remaining to hush the home crowd and intensify the club’s relegation fears.
When Pedro Porro headed in Xavi Simons’ cross to break the first-half tension inside the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, former Brighton manager De Zerbi ran up to his staff in delight.
Porro’s timely opener came during Brighton’s best first-half spell, in which Micky van de Ven hit his own post and Antonin Kinsky saved Danny Welbeck’s close-range header.
Spurs were denied a half-time lead by a remarkable shot from Kaoru Mitoma, a 20th-minute substitution after Diego Gomez’s early injury, who volleyed into the top corner in first-half injury time.
Simons’ spectacular strike, following fine work by replacement Lucas Bergvall, to reclaim possession high up the pitch, appeared to have earned De Zerbi a significant victory in his first home game in command, moving Spurs up two places to 16th.
However, their chances of avoiding their first top-flight relegation since 1977 remain in jeopardy when Rutter delivered a late sucker punch to keep his side firmly in contention for a European spot.
Brighton host fellow European hopefuls Chelsea on Tuesday at 20:00, while Tottenham return to action when they travel to bottom club Wolves next Saturday (15:00).
