Tottenham Hotspur failed to win for only the second time in their last seven Premier League games on Saturday. 

But whereas their previous non-win away at Chelsea felt like a well-earned point in the context of the Premier League title race, Sunday's draw against Crystal Palace ultimately represented two points dropped at Selhurst Park. 

Jose Mourinho's side took an early lead when Harry Kane's 23rd-minute strike caught the otherwise exceptional Vicente Guaita off guard. 

However, Spurs couldn't extend their advantage and in the second half appeared more concerned with protecting what they had than securing the victory by finding the net again.

In the end, that proved to be their downfall as Jeffrey Schlupp was fastest to react after Hugo Lloris had parried a point-blank header from Christian Benteke to make it 1-1. 

The nature of Spurs' second-half performance was one of the talking points in The Athletic's discussion thread covering the match, and journalist Charlie Eccleshare believes that Tottenham got the balance of the team slightly wrong on Sunday. 

He said: "Eze and Zaha were really dangerous but I think Spurs got the delicate balance of defending deep but retaining enough of a threat on the counter a touch wrong today. And it cost them."

Crystal Palace's Jeffrey Schlupp celebrates scoring vs Tottenham

GIVEMESPORT's Christy Malyan says...

Unfortunately, this is what you get with Mourinho.

When Spurs eke out wins against their divisional rivals, his tactical setups are labelled as a masterclass - when he tries to do the exact same thing against lesser sides and it doesn't work, he's often criticised for negative football. 

But it's worth remembering that Palace are usually at their best when they face the top teams because those matches naturally play to their biggest strengths - punishing the opposition on the counter and at set pieces. 

At the end of the season, a draw at Selhurst Park won't be looked back on as the result that costs Spurs the title, however in the context of the momentum the north Londoners have built up in recent weeks, it does feel like an opportunity missed. 

Inevitably though, you can't have one side of Mourinho without the other. He's never going to ask his team to take risks away from home when they're already protecting a lead, and some would argue he's well within his rights not to. 

It may be deemed a bit old school compared to what we've seen from Liverpool and Man City over the last few years, but considering how crazy this Premier League season has been, and how dangerous Palace can be in these situations, perhaps a point at Selhurst Park really isn't worth getting too upset about.