FA Cup Third Round
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1 (Kane 50)
PORTSMOUTH 0

SPURS strolled into the fourth round of the FA Cup today after a Harry Kane effort was enough to steer Antonio Conte’s men past League One opponents Portsmouth.

And while the victory was expected, the manager can take further delight in how his second-string midfield duet of Oliver Skipp and Pape Matar Sarr were in a class of their own.

Games like this are as much about auditioning for further participation in the Spring, and possible saving the club a January transfer fee, and with that in mind, it was a satisfying day’s work.

Bryan Gill made his third start in three and showed once again if his teammates trust him with the ball, he can contribute. While he will not replace a fit Dejan Kulusevski, the Spaniard has enough to be a handy squad player as he develops his game.

Sarr made his first start alongside Skipp and the Senegalese international was outstanding. Powerful on and off the ball, an intelligent footballing mind saw him always a yard ahead of his opponent.

In possession, he showed a relentless positivity allied with sensible ball management, never giving it away and always making the choice between the riskier attacking play and when it was wise to slow the proceedings down and start afresh.

Assistant coach Christian Stellini said afterwards that giving an alternative midfield duo a run out was important as the league campaign hots up.

He said: “Skippy and Pappe are so important for us. By the end of last season and during this season we have used Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Rodrigo Bentacur a lot. We need reliable players who can come in when they are needed and they were so good today. They moved the ball well.”

If there were disappointments, Emerson Royal yet again looked less than truly comfortable in defence and unable to get past a hit-and-hope game plan when it came to attacking. And today surely was the perfect chance for Heung Min Son to shake off his worst season ever in a Spurs shirt and get some goals chalked up against a League One outfit.

It was not to be.

All too often he dithered when a burst was needed, or made it far too easy to nick the ball from him with direct running that was devoid of trickery or nous. Son’s barren season continues and in a match where confidence building was on offer, he simply did not take up what was on the table.

Portsmouth coach Simon Bassey had set his players up to defend deep, keep the error count low and then see what might appear chance-wise.

In the first half, they failed to adventure much past the halfway line but soaked up the Spurs play well. The closest Portsmouth came followed a tidy spin in the box by Reeco Hackett-Fairchild, but the striker’s shot lacked the pace needed to really trouble stand in keeper Fraser Forster.

Spurs also did not give Pompey’s Number One Joshua Griffiths a great deal of exercise, despite the lion’s share of possession.

A couple of efforts from corners were knocked over the bar, a couple of shots were blocked, but Antonio Conte’s players had not turned domination into chances in the first 45.

In the second period, Tottenham’s midfield duo of Sarr and Skipp tightened their grip and when the opener came it had an air of inevitability about it.

Kane ploughed a furrow down the left and as Portsmouth players tried to halt the forward by swamping his progress with sheer weight of numbers, he played a short one-two with Sarr. It bought Kane the yard he needed to calibrate his sights, and his whipped shot was in the back of the net before Griffiths had set off on a suitably enthusiastic leap to try and stop the inevitable.

Portsmouth had no response.

The closest their enthusiastic fans had to enjoying a moment was an Owen Dale shot, which he thumped from the edge of the box but Sanchez was there to block it.

Spurs had chances to kill the proceedings off but were content to play keep ball in front of the found the deep lying, rugged Portsmouth back four. The lead remained slim but there was a sense that if needed Spurs had a few more gears to go through.

Now it is a week off and the league visit of Arsenal. Today’s gentle passage into the fourth round was the perfect way to warm up for the derby showdown and offers Conte options to consider.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR: Forster, Sanchez, Son, Kane, Gil (Devine 90) Royal, Sessegnon (Spence 77), Tanganga, Sarr, Davies, Skipp
Subs not used: Lloris, Doherty, Hojbjerg, Romero, Lenglet, White

PORTSMOUTH: Griffiths Swanson, Hume, Oglive, Tunnicliffe (Thompson 74), Bishop ( Pigott 84) Dale (Curtis 86), Morrell (Jacobs 84), Hackett-Fairchild (Koroma 74), Raggett, Morrison
Subs not used: Oluwayemi, Freeman, Payce, Dockerill.