Liverpool have dropped points in the Premier League title race courtesy of an action-packed 2-2 draw at Tottenham Hotspur this afternoon.
A frenetic contest swung both ways throughout, with Harry Kane giving Spurs a lead which was wiped out by goals from Diogo Jota and Andrew Robertson, before Son Heung-min earned a point for the hosts.
Robertson was also shown a red card in the final Premier League game before Christmas, as Liverpool fell three points behind Manchester City in the title race.
However, Jurgen Klopp's side may be content with the draw in North London, having seen Spurs create a string of clear chances even before they were reduced to 10 men.
The absences of Thiago Alcantara through coronavirus and Jordan Henderson through illness left Liverpool depleted in midfield, with 19-year-old Tyler Morton being handed his first Premier League start as a result.
Spurs, meanwhile, were able to name Son in their starting lineup and Lucas Moura and Oliver Skipp on the bench, despite reports that all three would be unavailable due to COVID, while Dele Alli and Ryan Sessegnon were also handed rare starts.
All of the pre-match uncertainty was quickly forgotten, though, as the contest began at a blistering pace which rarely relented throughout the 90 minutes.
Liverpool created the first chance after just two minutes when their flying full-backs linked up, Trent Alexander-Arnold finding Robertson only for the Scot to glance his header wide of the target.
The pair were a threat throughout and Alexander-Arnold came close himself shortly afterwards, hammering a left-footed strike towards goal which Hugo Lloris was forced to tip away.
Tottenham weathered that early storm and soon hit back themselves, though, with Kane seeing one close-range effort expertly blocked by Ibrahima Konate moments before opening the scoring.
Tanguy Ndombele slipped the ball through to the England captain, who steered his finish into the bottom far corner for just his second Premier League goal of the season, and his first at home.
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Kane almost turned provider just three minutes later when he and Son found themselves in a two-on-one situation, but the South Korean could not turn Kane's clipped pass on target at full stretch.
Kane was once again in the centre of the action moments later when he lunged into a challenge on Robertson and was fortunate to escape with just a yellow card.
The end-to-end action continued and both Naby Keita and Sadio Mane threatened for Liverpool before Alisson Becker made a stunning save to deny Dele Alli on the half-hour mark, guessing right when Alli looked certain to score having been played through by Son.
It proved to be a key moment in the match as Liverpool levelled things up five minutes later, with Robertson bursting to the byline and hanging the ball up in the middle for Jota to plant a firm header home.
Jota felt he should have had a penalty just a minute after scoring when he was barged into from behind inside the area, but referee Paul Tierney controversially waved his claims away.
Lloris then denied Mane and Alexander-Arnold in quick succession - the latter from a fierce volley at the back post - and there was still time for one more big chance before half time as Kane fluffed his lines after good work from Sessegnon.
The game quickly picked up where it left off in an equally breathless second half, with Jota nodding wide before Joel Matip survived a penalty shout for a clumsy challenge on Harry Winks.
Spurs should have restored their lead 10 minutes after the restart when they created another two-on-one scenario, but Alli did not put enough on his pass across to Kane and the England skipper was thwarted by a point-blank save from Alisson.
The hosts continued to squander chances and Kane was guilty again just two minutes later, nodding over from close range having had to react quickly with the goal gaping.
Alli then saw a soft penalty claim given short shrift when he was through on goal, and again that proved to be a pivotal moment in the game as Liverpool took the lead one minute later.
A goalmouth scramble ended with Alexander-Arnold firing the ball across the face, where Robertson was waiting to nod home from close range. Spurs argued for a handball against Mohamed Salah in the buildup, but VAR ruled that the goal came in a different phase of play.
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Liverpool's lead lasted only five minutes before Tottenham restored parity once more, this time courtesy of an Alisson error as he completely missed an attempted clearance.
That left Son with an empty goal to aim at, and this time Spurs took full advantage of a clear chance to make it 2-2.
The drama was not over there, though, as Robertson was shown a straight red card three minutes later for a heavy challenge on Emerson Royal.
The referee initially only deemed the offence worthy of a yellow card, but upgraded it to a red after checking the VAR monitor, much to Liverpool's chagrin.
Spurs could not make the most of their man advantage, however, as Liverpool held out to take a point from North London, leaving them three points adrift of leaders Manchester City heading into Christmas.
TOTTENHAM XI: Lloris; Emerson, Sanchez, Dier, Davies, Sessegnon (Reguilon 86'); Ndombele (Skipp 64'), Winks, Alli (Lucas 81'); Kane, Son
LIVERPOOL XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Konate, Robertson; Keita, Morton (Firmino 60'), Milner; Salah, Jota (92'), Mane (Tsimikas 82')
Barney Corkhill
