Spurs frustrated by Bournemouth
Tottenham stay unbeaten but could have had Lamela and Sissoko sent off
BOURNEMOUTH 0
TOTTENHAM 0
You have to hand it to Bournemouth and their highly rated young manager Eddie Howe who so many pundits believe should be handed the England job in the future.
Many observers felt this might be a step up in class for the side with the smallest ground and one of the tiniest budgets in the Premier League, especially after being shorn of key players through illness and injury just before kick-off on Saturday (Oct 22).
After being blown away by Tottenham last season - not once, but twice (5-1 at home and 3-0 away) - Howe's vibrant, energetic team, who scored six last time out against Hull, showed just how far they have come.
The Cherries went toe to toe with the expensively assembled London side, who were lucky to finish with a full quota of players.
On another day, they might have ended up with nine.
Eric Lamela and substitute Moussa Sissoko were both fortunate to stay on the pitch, the former - having already been booked - for a late challenge on Dan Gosling, the latter for a clear elbow on Man-of-the-Match Harry Arter for which, remarkably, the Argentinian went unpunished.
Had either of them been dismissed, Tottenham may well have lost their unbeaten record.
The last time they began a season with this many points, they won the title.
But that was 45 years ago and back-to-draws against West Brom and now Bournemouth suggest they still don't have enough firepower to make up for last season's bitter disappointment of losing out to Leicester.
TOLL
Mauricio Pochettino made just a couple of changes from the side that were lucky to come away with a point in the Champions League against Bayer Leverkusen in midweek.
But, as the Spurs boss is quickly discovering, fighting on all fronts takes its toll.
Certainly, his team picked it up in the second half and another clean sheet said a lot about Tottenham's resilience without the injured Toby Alderweirald.
But these are the kind of games you need to win to be regarded as genuine title contenders and Harry Kane's return can't come quickly enough.
"One thing we had to do today was match them," said Arter, who epitomised everything good about Bournemouth who have now taken 10 points from 12 at home and worked tirelessly to close down the opposition even though they tired after half-time.
"They turned us over easily last season, so it's good to see how far we have progressed. Sissoko said he caught me by accident and he doesn't seem to be that kind of player."
Arter, who was all over Tottenham's superstars like a rash, was playing in non-league football only a few years ago but drove Bournemouth on as they played Tottenham at their own game, pressing them high up the pitch and not allowing them to settle for a moment.
Arter was aided and abetted in midfield by England's Jack Wilshere, who got through 90 minutes for the first time in over two years.
The former Arsenal man would have been as pleased as anyone to stop Tottenham going top of the table, even for a few hours, and looks like he is getting back to the fitness levels that make him such a dangerous player on his day.
Both sides hit the woodwork during an intensive 90 minutes and, as goalless draws go, it was absorbing stuff.
Spurs will be disappointed that they couldn't hit the top of the table for the first time since August 2014 but, with a heavy programme of matches to come against Liverpool (League Cup), Leverkusen (Champions League) and both Leicester and Arsenal in the league, staying clear of suspensions will be a relief to Pochettino.
"They were very aggressive. It was a very competitive game, they were ready to compete...If we want to be contenders, we need to win games like these."
- Spurs manager Maurico Pochettino
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