Tottenham missed the chance to climb into the Premier League’s top four as Leicester City humbled Antonio Conte’s team 4-1 at the King Power Stadium.
Head coach Conte was back in the Spurs dugout having missed last week’s 1-0 win over Manchester City after undergoing gallbladder removal surgery.
But the Italian’s presence failed to inspire the visitors. Despite Rodrigo Bentancur’s early strike putting Tottenham ahead, Nampalys Mendy equalised with his first Leicester goal, while James Maddison and Kelechi Iheanacho put the hosts 3-1 to the good at half-time.
Harvey Barnes completed a thumping victory, firing home with nine minutes remaining to move Brendan Rodgers’ side six points clear of the relegation zone.
Tottenham broke through in the 14th minute when Ivan Perisic’s corner ricocheted kindly for Bentancur, who slotted into an open net from four yards. But Leicester turned the contest on its head with two goals in three minutes.
Mendy opened his account in emphatic fashion with a thumping 20-yard drive into the roof of the net after Spurs only half-cleared a corner.
The midfielder’s strong challenge on the halfway line then released Iheanacho, who unselfishly laid the ball off for Maddison to slide home.
Iheanacho made it 3-1 in first-half stoppage time when he neatly bent a 20-yard shot into the far corner.
Spurs looked to respond after the break when Bentancur, who later limped off injured, tested Danny Ward from distance.
However, Leicester put the result beyond doubt nine minutes from time. Having been denied by VAR in the 70th minute, this time Barnes received the ball from Maddison before calmly threading past Fraser Forster into the bottom-right corner from 20 yards.
