Tottenham midfielder Eric Dier insists they can cope without injured striker Harry Kane.

Spurs face an unwanted replay against Middlesbrough in eight days' time after a frustrating 1-1 draw in their first outing since Kane suffered a torn hamstring, which is expected to rule him out until March.

But as Dier pointed out, Spurs have generally coped well without their talisman in the past. They posted an almost identical win percentage with (56 per cent) and without (57 per cent) Kane last season, when the England captain missed 21 matches after suffering two ankle injuries, while their goal-to-game ratio was actually higher when he was not in the team (1.9 and 1.72).

“Every season we've been posed this question we've answered it," said a defiant Dier. “It's just up to the other players to step up. Harry's one of the best strikers in the world, so it would be a loss to any team. He's a really, really important player for us, but everybody has the opportunity to be an important player."

Reflecting on Sunday's result, Dier said: “We need to be better in every aspect. We know that and we're trying to be. Yesterday was disappointing. After conceding the goal, [Boro] made it difficult, they played very deep. We controlled the game from the beginning, I think our attitude was good and in the end we probably should have scored a second."