Star man
Harry Kane was undoubtedly the find of the season in the Premier League, and he did not even start a top-flight game until November! He usurped Emmanuel Adebayor and Roberto Soldado in the pecking order, and never looked back.
One of Tottenham’s own finished the campaign with 31 goals in all competitions – the first to hit 30 since Gary Lineker in 1986-87 – and was deservedly named PFA Young Player of the Year.
What impressed so many about Kane – including England manager Roy Hodgson, who awarded him a debut which was marked by a goal within three minutes – was his ability to score goals in a great variety of ways, and against the top sides.
The 21-year-old struck from outside of the box in his brace against Chelsea, showed great feet to score at Liverpool, and produced this bullet of a header for a late winner in the North London derby, in front of his adoring fans.
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Young Player of the Year
While Kane’s goals understandably stole the headlines, many Spurs fans will argue that Nabil Bentaleb is every bit as good as his fellow academy graduate in his own position.
The Algerian, who broke through under Tim Sherwood last season, quickly earned the trust of Pochettino and formed a promising partnership with Ryan Mason in front of the back four.
Composure, passing ability, strong in the tackle and remarkable natural fitness, the 20-year-old has every attribute that any of Europe’s top clubs could ask for in a holding midfielder.
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Weak link
Spurs defied probability to place fifth despite having the joint-fifth worst defensive record in the Premier League.
Their 53 goals conceded is the most by a Tottenham team since their bottom-half finish of 2006-07, and the highest tally by any side that has finished fifth in seven years. It could have been higher still had it not been for the heroics of Hugo Lloris in goal.
A lack of a regular centre-back partnership and Pochettino’s tendency to push his full-backs forward were certainly contributing factors, but the blame should not solely be on a back five which largely featured young defenders who are still learning the game.
Tottenham were arguably so leaky because they defended poorly as a team, with a lack of experience in their midfield protection and little to no assistance from anybody further forward. Shambolic moments like this need to be avoided next season.
Moments like this from Kyle Walker are why Spurs are after Kieran Trippier. http://t.co/mn9BqKT7Qc
— Joe Fish (@JoeFish08) June 2, 2015
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