Match Analysis: Tottenham Hotspur 4-3 Leicester City

Tottenham Hotspur gave their top-four hopes a big boost on Saturday with a thrilling 4-3 win at home to struggling Leicester City.

Harry Kane scored twice inside the opening 15 minutes for Spurs, but Jamie Vardy pulled one back for the visitors at the end of the first half.

Wes Morgan then drew Leicester level just 10 minutes after the restart before Kane sealed his hat-trick from the penalty spot to put Tottenham back in front just after the hour.

The home side's victory was secured with five minutes left as Jeffrey Schlupp put through his own net, though a late strike from David Nugent set up a nervy finish.

Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at the action between the two teams at White Hart Lane.

Match statistics

TOTTENHAM Shots: 10 On target: 5 Possession: 66% Corners: 3 Fouls: 8

LEICESTER Shots: 14 On target: 9 Possession: 34% Corners: 4 Fouls: 9

Was the result fair?

Spurs just about deserved the victory in the end, though Leicester will feel unlucky not to have come away from the capital with something to show for their efforts.

Tottenham's performance

Spurs came flying out of the traps and must have thought that it was going to be an enjoyable day when Kane netted twice early on. However, the defensive frailties that were on show in their 3-0 defeat to Manchester United reappeared and made it a much closer game than it should have been. Mauricio Pochettino's men looked good going forward as Kane spearheaded their attack, but it was in midfield and defence where they were worryingly inconsistent. Leicester were afforded too much space and even looked like the better team for large chunks of the afternoon. Tottenham will be delighted to have come away from the game with the victory because it keeps their Champions League qualification hopes alive, though they will need to improve on this performance if they want to mount a serious challenge for the top four.

Leicester's performance

The Foxes can be proud of how they pushed Spurs all they way. Nigel Pearson's side could even have come away with a point or more on another day. While their sometimes-flaky defending was no big surprise, it was their wastefulness in front of goal that really cost them. The visitors carved out good chances either side of half time thanks to some bright attacking play, but some poor finishing meant that they were always playing with fire - even when they got it back to 2-2 and had the wind in their sails. Tottenham's clinical edge in the final third was ultimately what decided the match. It is now looking increasingly unlikely that Leicester will stay in the Premier League, though they can still take plenty of positives from this display.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Harry Kane: It is hard to look beyond the Spurs striker, who took his tally to 19 Premier League goals for the season with a hat-trick. The youngster's clever movement and lethal finishing proved too much for the Leicester defence as he capped a fine week with three goals.

Biggest gaffe

Nacer Chadli did himself no favours by diving in the first half. The Belgian could have stayed on his feet and got a shot away, but he instead went down very easily under a challenge in an attempt to win a penalty. Mike Dean had none of it and booked him.

Referee performance

Dean enjoyed a solid afternoon in North London as he allowed the game to flow at an exciting pace. His biggest decision came with the penalty late on. Despite it looking harsh on Leicester at the time, replays showed that Nugent was clumsy in bringing down Danny Rose inside the box. Not that Pearson will see it that way.

What next?

Tottenham: Spurs are back in action on April 5 when they travel to Burnley in the Premier League.

Leicester: The Foxes continue their battle for Premier League survival at home to West Ham United on April 4.