Mo Salah and Liverpool denied familiar freedom as Spurs' new hero makes instant impact

Twice in as many minutes midway through the first half Antonin Kinsky played lofted passes to his right that went straight to the desired target.

And the Spurs fans stood behind the debutant breathed a collective sigh of relief before breaking into applause.

The mere presence of their new goalkeeper, signed from Slavia Prague for £12.5m, seemed to instantly settle a Tottenham team that has performed with frayed nerves over the past month.

Ange Postecoglou said that when he met the Czech for the first time last weekend he could sense that he had the personality to thrive on big occasions.

It was not quite flawless and the sight of Kinsky making a gesture for everyone else to keep cool after he initially fumbled a straightforward shot from Cody Gakpo approaching the interval will have raised eyebrows.

But there were also good stops from Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez - plus no shortage of assured passes with both feet.

And boosted by having a calming presence between the posts, Spurs both attacked with a purpose and defended with a resilience that had been absent from recent error-filled defeats.

Not least when shipping six to Arne Slot’s side in the league three days before Christmas.

Postecoglou claimed that he had “taken some learnings” from that mauling that could be put to good effect last night.

And the simple fact Salah was denied the freedom of north London represented a massive improvement.

They remain in the middle of an injury crisis - worsened by Rodrigo Bentancur collapsing in the opening minutes - and most of those who remain capable of playing are nearing the point of exhaustion.

Yet in a period of true adversity, this was a display packed with grit, spirit and poise from a team so regularly chastised for their love of chaos.

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