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Tottenham Hotspur fell to another damaging defeat on Wednesday as they lost 2-0 to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Harry Kane started up front in west London after making his comeback from an ankle ligament injury against Burnley at the weekend.

The England captain scored his side’s goal at Turf Moor as they lost 2-1, but he had no such personal success against the Blues.

Indeed, in a disjointed Spurs performance, Kane struggled to create anything of note.

Per WhoScored, the striker had three shots on goal but, like the entire Tottenham side, failed to test goalkeeper Willy Caballero.

In total, he touched the ball 37 times, the least of any other outfield player on the pitch.

It is hard not to question whether Kane is actually fully fit, such has been his sluggishness in his last two outings.

Usually so adept at protecting the ball, he was dispossessed twice and had a 29% dribble success. In short, he roundly failed to provide any sort of meaningful threat to the Chelsea backline.

Now, it is understandable as to why manager Mauricio Pochettino would want to play his star striker as quickly as possible. His goal against Burnley appeared to confirm that the Argentine had made the correct decision but, against Chelsea, he and the rest of the Spurs attack were languid and listless.

Bringing Kane back into the side has also hindered Son Heung-Min, who struggled to make a tangible impact against Maurizio Sarri’s side after enjoying an excellent spell while his team-mate was on the treatment table. He scored three goals in three matches with Kane out but, since the Englishman’s return to the team, he has failed to hit the back of the net.

Kane is likely to play again in the north London derby this weekend when Spurs host Arsenal at Wembley after avoiding a ban for an alleged headbutt aimed at Cesar Azpilicueta.

It remains to be seen if that will be the correct decision, however.

He is not fully fit and, though he will surely be chomping at the bit to play, Pochettino may have to leave him out for the good of his side’s attack.

Indeed, the sad reality is that his display against the Blues was evidence that, in his current state, he is perhaps doing more harm than good.