Tottenham’s top-four hopes suffered a setback as they were held to a goalless draw by Brentford, with Bees midfielder Christian Eriksen impressing against his former club.
The Denmark midfielder, facing Spurs for the first time since he left for Inter Milan in January 2020, was given a warm reception by players and fans before kick-off in west London.
He was central to much of Brentford’s attacking play, particularly from set pieces, and they were inches from a dramatic late winner when his added-time free-kick was headed onto a post by Ivan Toney.
Another Eriksen corner in the first half was also headed onto an upright by Toney, while Pontus Jansson’s header was cleared off the line by Harry Kane in the second half.
Tottenham, in contrast, failed to produce any clear-cut opportunities as they came up against a resilient Bees defence.
Kane did come close to snatching the points, but his looping header went just wide with David Raya at full stretch.
Antonio Conte’s side are now two points behind Arsenal in fifth after their north London rivals beat Manchester United in Saturday’s early kick-off to move the Gunners into the final Champions League qualification position.
The draw moves Brentford above Brighton into 11th and onto 40 points, with the Bees now all but certain of Premier League survival