When the talking stopped, Fulham started. Fired up, perhaps, by their burning sense of injustice, they produced a spirited display and foiled Tottenham's plan to close in on the Premier League summit.
Scott Parker was furious about the way this fixture was thrust upon him at short notice. Parker called it 'scandalous' ahead of the game, but he will be encouraged by the response from his team.
They are deep in relegation trouble and they trailed from midway through the first half to a flying header from Harry Kane, but they refused to be dominated by their London rivals.