Tottenham lost 1-0 to Brighton on home turf in their most recent fixture, which ended their solid run of form. Antonio Conte's side had won their last four matches before the clash at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Not only did Spurs lose the match, they didn't have a single shot on target against Graham Potter's side and managed just five shots. Despite the defeat, the Lilywhites still sit fourth in the league, after Arsenal also lost their match against Southampton.
The reverse tie between the two teams at the Amex Stadium saw Tottenham win 2-0 but the shaky performance allowed Potter's side to come out on top. Spurs not only produced a below average team display, some individual performances were also below par.
READ MORE: What actually happened with Harry Kane's USA trip and what Conte told Spurs stars after Brighton
In his post match press conference, Conte spoke about what the Seagulls did, that Spurs failed to find a solution to. "I think that Brighton was very good to close the space, and we were not so good to close the space," he admitted. "In the difficulty, we have to try and find the solution with a single player. Today I think we can do much better."
Harry Kane produced a performance that was below his average, in the match on Saturday. After a slow start to the season, recent games have shown the England captain back at his best. The 28-year-old has now scored 22 goals and registered nine assists in 44 appearances. However his performance against Brighton wasn't on par with his recent showings.
The striker had just one shot during the game, making two key passes and one clearance, with just 57.1 per cent passing accuracy. A concern for Conte is that when the likes of Kane or Son Heung-min are having a slightly off day, there isn't that quality in the depth of the squad to completely change the game.
Steven Bergwijn and Lucas Moura are both often given match minutes during the second half of games, but neither of them managed to turn the game around on Saturday. This wasn't the only concern against Potter's side.
During the game, some fans spotted that Kane rolled his ankle on two separate occasions. The England captain has had a history of ankle injuries over the last few years.
His ankle problems have caused him to miss 20 games since the 2016/17 season, with four of those being during the last campaign. During the match against Brighton, a fan explained that they had noticed on two occasions that the striker rolled his ankle, during a challenge from Joel Veltman and a save by Robert Sanchez.
@wardy8882: "Did anyone else notice that Kane rolled his ankle in that early chance that Veltman blocked, then again when Sanchez landed on him. He was very quiet after the first roll, wonder if it [affected] him mentally as well as physically?!"
With Kane knowing how fragile his ankles can be, it wouldn't be surprising if he had been more cautious after challenges from the opposition. This isn't ideal for the 28-year-old himself, or for the team performance, which lacked quality in a number of areas on the pitch.
Spurs' last two games have seen some fierce challenges, with Matty Cash's on Matt Doherty, in Tottenham's 4-0 victory over Aston Villa, ruling the Irishman out for the rest of the season. The game is a contact sport and of course a player like Kane will expect to face tough challenges from opposing sides. However Conte can't afford for his one striker to pick up an injury at a crucial time in the season. Kane stayed on for the full game on Saturday, which suggests he may have just been cautious in parts of the match, rather than injured.
Although the Italian explained he was joking, earlier this year Conte reiterated Kane's importance, after slight injury concerns. "No. He had a hit in his back but he has to play! If he has one leg he has to play. Harry knows very well the importance he has on the squad for his personality, for his experience. But he is good," the 52-year-old admitted. "I am joking, I don't force a player if he is injured to play. I only say to tell you the importance of the player. He is good, he is ready."
Kane, Conte and the rest of the Tottenham team will hope the 28-year-old didn't pick up any sort of knock against Brighton. The England captain will hopefully be fully fit and back to his best in Spurs' next clash, which is a trip to Brentford on Saturday.
