Briefly it looked as if Leicester City would be punished for a rare dull display but that was to reckon without this side’s spirit and their penchant for dramatic fightbacks.
Dele Alli’s headed goal for Tottenham Hotspur nine minutes from time turned out to be the trigger for an onslaught by Leicester that brought an almost instant equaliser from the irrepressible Riyad Mahrez and very nearly a winning goal for the hosts, as Hugo Lloris made a late save to thwart Wes Morgan.
Leicester remain unbeaten and, unbelievably to the many tipsters who pegged them pre-season as relegation certainties, they also remain top of the league at this early stage of the campaign. Spurs, meanwhile, were again left lamenting their tendency to concede late goals, Mahrez’s strike following the two that Stoke struck at White Hart Lane last week.
There had been little early indication that this match would reach such a hectic conclusion. Indeed, when the referee ordered drinks breaks midway through each half due to the intense heat, there were mutterings that the players seemed in need of some sort of legal stimulus. The first such break was followed by the game’s first shot on target, Kasper Schmeichel being forced to push away a low drive by Mousa Dembélé in the 28th minute.
The Tinkerman tag may stick to Claudio Ranieri but the Italian saw no reason to alter a team that had won their opening two matches and he deployed the same lineup for the third successive match. The home side’s roster of substitutes, meanwhile, offered evidence of a club intent on pursuing an impressive gradual makeover, with this week’s latest recruit, the Swiss international Gokhan Inler, taking his place on a bench that featured £30m worth of talent. For all that, the first half was poor.
Ranieri said the heat sapped the energy from his normally effervescent side, while Spurs seemed to be suffering from the loss of Christian Eriksen, ruled out by a minor knee injury in the buildup.
The Dane’s absence meant the service to Harry Kane was patchy. The striker toiled alone for much of the match and even though Mauricio Pochettino insisted afterwards that there is no reason for Kane to be unable to continue carrying such a burden for the entire season, it is easy to see why Spurs are interested in signing another striker, notably West Bromwich Albion’s Saido Berahino.
Mahrez and Marc Albrighton launched several raids in the first half but were repelled with relative ease, although Leicester fans protested that their team should have been given a penalty, when Mahrez went down under a challenge from Jan Vertonghen in the 42nd minute. Mahrez went closer in the 69th minute, when his 10-yard shot bounced out off the bottom of the post.
That effort came against the run of play, as Spurs improved in the second half and took charge of midfield. Kyle Walker presented Nacer Chadli with a chance to open the scoring after 48 minutes but the Belgian sent his shot skywards from 12 yards. Érik Lamela again contributed little after being drafted in to deputise for Eriksen and was replaced by Alli in the 65th minute. The 19-year-old made a much stronger impression and crowned a positive performance with a goal, stooping to head in Chadli’s cross from close range.
Last season’s great escape from relegation should have forewarned the visitors of Leicester’s capacity to come back from adversity but Spurs celebrated so hard that they lost concentration. Within 25 seconds of the restart Leicester were level, Mahrez dashing into the box to fire past Lloris after collecting a knock-down from Jamie Vardy. “All managers want players like Vardy, he is a warrior, he never gives up,� said Ranieri. The watching Roy Hodgson may have made a similar note.
As if fuelled by an elixir Leicester went for the kill, the King Power Stadium heaving with now-familiar fanatical support. Having thought they were on the verge of their first win of the season, Spurs found themselves clinging to a point. Lloris parried a close-range header from Morgan with his chest to keep the scores level.
“Until we scored we deserved to win,� said Pochettino. “But then we made some mistakes and we conceded chances and they scored and then in a few minutes we conceded some more chances. It’s a little bit of a shame because I think we dominated the second half. We need to compete better because we conceded two goals in the last few minutes against Stoke and have now done so again so that will be my focus next week.�