Who was Tottenham Hotspur’s first-choice penalty taker in 2017/18?

This article looks back at Tottenham Hotspur’s set-piece options during the 2017/18 season, when Mauricio Pochettino’s side featured Harry Kane, Christian Eriksen, Dele Alli and Heung-Min Son.

Harry Kane was Spurs’ undisputed first-choice penalty taker as he pursued a third successive Premier League Golden Boot.

Kane did not have an unblemished record from the spot, but his confidence and status within the Tottenham side meant that the occasional miss was unlikely to prevent him from retaining responsibility.

Heung-Min Son, Dele Alli, Érik Lamela and Fernando Llorente provided alternative options whenever Kane was unavailable.

Who took Tottenham’s corners and direct free-kicks?

Christian Eriksen remained Tottenham’s principal set-piece specialist, although his monopoly over dead-ball situations was not quite as strong as it had been in previous seasons.

The Denmark international was an accomplished direct free-kick taker and a major creative threat from dead-ball situations, but Spurs possessed several other options.

Eric Dier was capable of striking direct free-kicks from distance, while Kane was also prepared to shoot from outside the penalty area.

Mauricio Pochettino increasingly shared corner-taking responsibilities around his squad, with Ben Davies, Kieran Trippier and Heung-Min Son competing with Eriksen and Lamela for deliveries from either side.

Fantasy football managers considering Eriksen therefore needed to monitor how those responsibilities developed, since a reduction in his share of corners could have an impact on his assist potential.

Spurs did not possess one of the tallest squads in the Premier League, but Kane remained a significant aerial threat, while Eric Dier and Toby Alderweireld were capable of making their presence felt inside the opposition penalty area.

Editor’s note: This article was originally produced as a Tottenham Hotspur set-piece guide for the 2017/18 season. The original table of penalty, free-kick and corner takers is no longer available following a later website migration. The article has been retained as part of the Fantasy Sports Portal archive and should not be interpreted as a guide to Tottenham’s current set-piece takers.