Tottenham Hotspur got back to winning ways in the Premier League with a gritty 1-0 victory at Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday night.

Antonio Conte would have been looking to spark a reaction after his side were defeated in the north London derby last weekend, before being held in a goalless statement against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League on Tuesday.

And he certainly got it as Harry Kane headed home the match-winner in the 22nd minute.

The England skipper met Heung-min Son's perfectly timed cross to loop an effort over Seagulls goalkeeper Robert Sanchez. He celebrated by pointing to the sky after what has been an incredibly difficult week for the Lilywhites after the sudden passing of fitness coach Gian Piero Ventrone.

Both the 29-year-old goalscorer and Sky Sports' man of the match Ryan Sessegnon dedicated the win to the impactful Italian, who was known as 'The Marine.'

If anyone epitomised his 'brutal' training regime and imperious conditioning, then it was Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, who proved to be the true driving force behind the three points at the Amex Stadium.

The Danish powerhouse was absolutely everywhere, not only helping to defend in what was initially a three-man engine room alongside Rodrigo Bentancur and Yves Bissouma but also further up the pitch, in part thanks to the tactical tweak.

Indeed, Hojbjerg contributed more interceptions than any player on the pitch with a total of four, which was just three fewer than what the rest of Conte's team managed on the night, as per SofaScore. He also put in four clearances, one block, and won two duels too.

He wasn't dubbed "a monster" by ex-Denmark international Morten Bisgaard, for nothing, clearly. Meanwhile, his former manager Jose Mourinho, who signed him for £15m from Southampton in 2020, once suggested that he was the captain without the armband, only further emphasising his influence on the pitch.

The 27-year-old midfielder led the way for touches, by quite some margin, with 94 across the 90 minutes he was on the pitch. Hojbjerg would also provide 69 accurate passes, of which one was a key chance created and he managed to get forward with a 100% dribble success rate.

Centre-back Eric Dier was closest to Hojbjerg in terms of influence, managing 21 fewer touches. That only goes to show just how much of Tottenham's game ran through the £100k-per-week animal.

As evident above and going by football.london Alasdair Gold's remarks in his post-game column, Hojbjerg was the "driving force in both halves" and was clearly a big part of the side sealing a much-needed victory, one that cements Spurs in third place for at least another week.

AND in other news, Paratici can seal his best Spurs signing yet with £105m "phenomenon" outperforming Son...