Muniz has been a Fulham player since August 2021 but, until these last few games, he has never looked capable of leading the line. Last season he went on loan to Middlesbrough in the Championship and scored just two goals.

The careers of strikers can change in an instant, though, and Muniz is suddenly an entirely different threat. In his last seven games, he has scored seven times. No player in the Premier League can match his tally since the start of February. His tireless running was one of many, many issues for Spurs on the night.

“What a performance, again,” said Silva. “He never gave up, even in moments when he was not even involved in the squad. When the chance came, he stepped in. He deserves all the credit.”

The remarkable form of Muniz has not been good news for Armando Broja, who joined Fulham on loan from Chelsea in January but has barely featured since. The deal for Broja is thought to include a clause which requires Fulham to pay £4 million if he did not play 60 per cent of their matches. This clause will now be triggered.

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Clearly, this is not a move that has gone to plan, although Fulham will rightly argue that Muniz has earned the right to spearhead Silva’s attack. The 22-year-old caused all sorts of problems for the Spurs defence, where new signing Radu Dragusin was making his first start since his £25 million switch from Genoa, and raced behind them to score Fulham’s first.

Throughout the game, Fulham continually found space behind the Spurs full-backs. It was from this position that Antonee Robinson found Muniz, and from which Timothy Castagne assisted Sasa Lukic for the second goal. The third came as Calvin Bassey’s shot hit the post and trickled across the six-yard box. Muniz, so sharp, got there first.

For Spurs there were chances created, but none converted as Brennan Johnson and Timo Werner both fired wide. Last week, they won 4-0 at Aston Villa. This week, they were thrashed. Whether you see this as a race for top four or otherwise, such fluctuations in form are not conducive to a team hitting its targets.

Clearly emotional after a disappointing loss, Spurs captain Heung-Min Son said his team have taken “two steps backward” after such a positive result last week against Villa.

Postecoglou, who said his side lacked intensity in the second half and were careless with the ball, did not believe the shock 3-0 defeat had dented Tottenham’s top four ambitions.

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He joked: “It’s all over, we’ll just go for sixth” when asked if the defeat was a serious check on their momentum.

“There’s ten games left. plenty of football to play,” Postecoglou added. “If we get top four great, but its more about how we play.”

The Telegraph, London