Harry Kane spot-on once again to help Tottenham break down Everton

Three was a crowd as far as Tottenham were concerned. They were laboured when Son Heung-min, Harry Kane and Richarlison were on the pitch. Everton repelled everything Spurs threw at them and it was only when Richarlison went off injured at the start of the second half that this game changed, giving Antonio Conte the chance to use his bench to good effect.

The shift to 3-5-2, with Yves Bissouma on, made the difference. Spurs, who have made their best ever start to a Premier League season, soon broke through Frank Lampard’s Everton. Kane broke the deadlock from the spot on his 400th appearance for the club and Conte could celebrate going a point below Arsenal at the top.

From a tactical perspective the intrigue lay in whether Spurs would possess the creative smarts to break Everton down. There was a feeling that the nature of the opposition would not suit Conte’s side, who are at their most dangerous luring their prey in before breaking at speed, though they worked hard to counter that narrative during the early stages.

All the activity came from Spurs and it would not have been against the run of play had the breakthrough arrived inside the first 10 minutes. Son almost surged through with a mazy dribble and Richarlison wasted a chance to hurt his former team when he headed over after Ivan Perisic crossed from the left.

But Everton have become skilled at weathering storms. They have shed the carelessness that plagued them last season and were soon keeping Spurs at arm’s length. Space behind the visiting defence was limited, making it harder for Kane to drop deep and release Son and Richarlison. Lampard knew that he could count on the individuals in his back four to stand up to Conte’s attack.

There was the veteran