Brilliant Under-23s Climb Premier League 2 Standings With Tottenham Victory

A double from Harvey Barnes either side of half-time, including a magnificent free-kick from 20 yards, and two goals from striker Josh Gordon helped the Foxes climb four places to seventh. On their final outing of the 2016/17 campaign, City were dominant throughout and fully deserved all three points but must now wait at least 24 hours for their fate to be confirmed. 

Spurs were reduced to 10 men late on when goalkeeper Thomas Glover handled outside the area but still managed to pull one back in the 89th minute through Marcus Edwards from the penalty spot. City nonetheless secured their fifth win of the season and will now await results from fixtures involving Derby County and Southampton on Friday – against Chelsea and Manchester City respectively. 

City came out of the blocks with an intensity seldom matched by their hosts. With Barnes back in a Leicester City shirt, fresh from a superb four-month loan spell with Sky Bet League 1 outfit MK Dons, manager Steve Beaglehole had a strong line-up at his disposal for the decisive encounter. 

After a period of assured possession and neat interplay, the Foxes got their due reward for a promising start in the 22nd minute. Seconds after Barnes had stung Glover’s fingertips with a fierce drive from a tight angle, he was there again to flick it beyond the ‘keeper to give his side a precious advantage.

After the break, City had Glover worried again. This time, however, Bartosz Kapustka couldn’t find the target from just inside the 18-yard box. Beaglehole’s men were pursuing every loose ball, contesting each 50-50 and closing down their opponents with a potentially pivotal victory in their sights.

Connor Wood’s deliveries continued to cause problems for the hosts too. With 55 minutes on the clock, the mobile left-back whipped it into the Spurs penalty area and almost forced Keanan Bennetts into scuffing it into his own net. To the Tottenham man’s relief, though, it glanced just wide of Glover’s post. 

The hosts, under the guidance of Matt Wells, carried a threat of their own, too, and could have equalised just after the hour-mark if not for a smart save by Ben Hamer to deny substitute Sam Shashoua. City needn’t have been too alarmed, though, as Gordon and Barnes would go on to put the match beyond Spurs in the latter stages.

First, Gordon sidestepped Glover to curl it in after 75 minutes. That effort was just the beginning for Beaglehole’s men. Glover was later dismissed for handling outside his area and Barnes capitalised with a spectacular effort from a free-kick - arrowing it straight into the right corner. 

Gordon was there again with just four minutes remaining to apply a deft finish to Wood’s brilliant cross. A spot-kick was awarded to Tottenham late on and Edwards narrowed the arrears after being felled by Hamza Choudhury - but it didn’t dampen the mood in the Foxes changing room at full-time. 

Major moment

Back from MK Dons after a highly impressive loan spell in the Football League, Harvey Barnes made an emphatic return to life in a Leicester City shirt. The 19-year-old gave the Foxes a useful attacking outlet just behind Josh Gordon and he proved to be a real menace throughout a breathless encounter. 

Barnes, who has now scored seven goals in total for the Under-23s this term, struck in the 22nd minute to calm City’s nerves and giving them something to protect. It proved to be a turning point for Steve Beaglehole’s men with them eventually going on to secure all three points - which may just be enough.

Who impressed? 

With five goals and a Young Player of the Season award to his name during his time at Stadium MK, it was no surprise to see Harvey Barnes make such a positive return for the Foxes. Barnes has been a revelation under Dons manager Robbie Neilson and his impressive form continued in London.

His Tottenham counterparts struggled to keep up at times as he pulled the strings in an attacking three alongside Bartosz Kapustka and Liandro Martis. On the back of yet another noteworthy display, Steve Beaglehole and his coaching team continue to be rewarded for placing their trust in his talent.

Where does it leave us? 

This victory gives City a very real chance of survival in Premier League 2 Division 1. Now up to seventh place in the 12-team standings, they need results to go their way over the coming 24 hours to avoid slipping back into the bottom two. With 12th placed Reading out of the equation, on 19 points, Derby host Chelsea at Pride Park on Friday night. 

The Rams started Thursday one place above the Foxes but now trail them by two points. If they fail to win their final fixture of the campaign against the Blues, Leicester will contest the 2017/18 in Division 1 once more. The same permutations also apply for Southampton, who face Manchester City on Friday.

If neither result goes City's way, however, they would then require Spurs to lose their final game at United in 10 days' time, or for the Red Devils to lose both of their remaining two fixtures - the first of which is away at Arsenal.

TOTTENHAM: Glover, Tanganga, Brown, Amos, Maghoma, Lesniak (c), Bennetts (Marsh 82), Goddard (Shashoua 58), Tracey, Edwards, Sterling (Whiteman 79).

SUBS NOT USED: Roles. 

GOAL: Edwards 89 pen. 

CITY: Hamer, Johnson, Moore (c), Knight, Wood, Hammond (Uche Rubio 86), Choudhury, Kapustka (Kaba Sherif 53), Barnes, Martis (Watts 66), Gordon. 

SUBS NOT USED: Pascanu, Iversen.

GOALS: Barnes 22, 79, Gordon 75, 86. 

REFEREE: Dean Treleaven

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