Sluggish Spurs kick into gear in second half to save point at Brentford 

NORMAL SERVICE RESUMED: Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Kane scores. Pic: Kieran Cleeves/PA Wire.

BRENTFORD 2 (Janelt 15, Toney 54) TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2 (Kane 65, Hojbjerg 72) 

ANTONIO CONTE said before kickoff that he thought the Premier League was returning too soon after the World Cup, and for nearly an hour it looked like his players agreed with him.

Tottenham hardly turned up for this St Stephen's Day lunchtime kick-off until the 65th minute, by which time they were two goals down and heading for a London derby defeat.

But Harry Kane started the fightback with his 14th goal of the season and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg equalised to ensure Spurs got a point, after Vitaly Janelt and Ivan Toney had put Brentford ahead.

By the final whistle, Tottenham deserved a draw and could have won, but Conte's side were woeful for over an hour.

Brentford were the livelier side from the start and it was no surprise when they took the lead in the 15th minute. Bryan Mbeumo pounced on a loose ball, chipped a cross from the left that Mads Roerslev volleyed towards goal. The ball deflected off defender Clement Lenglet and stand-in keeper Fraser Forster could only parry into the path of Vitaly Janelt, who drilled it home from close range.

It was no less than Brentford deserved, as Spurs struggled to get going on a pitch that was cut up after London Irish plsayed rugby here three days earlier. It did not make for fluent passing football, but there was no excuse for the lack of fight from Tottenham, who barely won a header in a low-grade first half.

Their few efforts on goal were long-range shots from Heung Min Son, Dejan Kulusevski and Lenglet, but none of then troubled Brentford keeper David Raya, who also set up his defensive wall well enough to repel a powerful free-kick from Kane.

Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Kane celebrates scoring his sides first goal during the Premier League match at the Gtech Community Stadium.

Shortly before half-time, Toney ran half the length of the pitch and round Forster to put the ball in the net only to be flagged offside.

But nine minutes into the second half, the striker increased Brentford's lead from close range. Eric Dier conceded a needless corner with a horrible slice, and when Mbeumo sent the ball in, Christian Norgaard's glancing header fell perfectly for Toney to shoot home from close range.

Tottenham finally showed some fight, and Kane scored his 14th goal of the season when he headed in Lenglet's deep cross from the left in the 65th minute.

And soon afterwards Spurs were right back in it when Hojbjerg equalised, given too much time and space inside Brentford's penalty area when Dejan Kulusevski cut back from the right byline.

Spurs could have won it in the end. Kane rose above Raya to head another Lenglet cross, but the ball rebounded off the bar, and then the Spanish keeper made two excellent saves to keep a long-range volley from Davinson Sanchez and a low shot from Son in stoppage time.

BRENTFORD (3-5-2): Raya 6; Zanka 6, Mee 6, Pinnock 7; Roerslev 6, Jensen 6, Norgaard 7, Janelt 7, Henry 6; Mbeumo 6, Toney 7.

TOTTENHAM (3-4-3): Forster 6; Tanganga 5, Dier 6, Lenglet 7; Doherty 6, Hojbjerg 7, Bissouma 6, Perisic 7; Kulusevski 7, Kane 7, Son 6. 

Referee: David Coote