JSFiddle - React, Tailwind, and code Playground

HTML

<a href='#'>
    <img src='http://www.cadcourse.com/winston/Images/SoccerBall.jpg' width='50' height='50'/>
    <span>Underlined Whitespace</span>
</a>
<br/>
<br/>
<a href='#'>
    <img src='http://www.cadcourse.com/winston/Images/SoccerBall.jpg' width='50' height='50'/>No Underlined Whitespace
</a>

CSS

img {
    border: 1px solid #CCC;
    padding: 10px;
}

a {
    display:table;
}

a > * { display: table-cell; vertical-align: middle; }