FROM TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR STADIUM – Tottenham opened their UEFA Europa League campaign with a manic 3-0 win against Azerbaijani side Qarabag.
Kick-off in north London was delayed by 35 minutes due to severe travel disruption around the city, which meant Qarabag didn’t arrive until just before the initial slated time of 20:00.
Spurs played nearly the entire match with ten men after an early red card, but Ange Postecoglou’s side were impressive regardless.
How the game unfolded
Within seven minutes of kick-off, Tottenham found themselves a man down. A loose touch from Radu Dragusin saw Juninho pinch the ball and race through to goal, only for the Romanian defender to trip him as the last man, and he was sent off for the foul.
But the hosts broke the deadlock soon after. Dominic Solanke stole the ball off of Julio Ramao, and he played in Brennan Johnson to fire past goalkeeper Mateusz Kochalski.
Another chance for Johnson came and went when he raced onto a long pass from Archie Gray and rounded Kochalski, but his effort from a tight angle bobbled wide.
Qarabag should have been level just before the break. Elvin Jafarquliyev scampered to the byline and pulled back a cross into the six-yard box, where Juninho turned it past the post.
Shortly after the interval, Tottenham doubled their lead. A corner from Dejan Kulusevski was flapped at by Kochalski, and Pape Matar Sarr was on hand at the back post to convert the loose ball.
Minutes later, Qarabag were awarded a penalty when Yves Bissouma brought down Jafarquliyev. However, Tural Bayramov skied the spot kick.
Almost immediately down the other end, Son Heung-min teed up Solanke, but he was denied by the feet of Kochalski.
Qarabag were attacking with more intensity and rattled the post through Juninho after he beat the last line of the Spurs defence.
The visitors were left pretty vulnerable at the back themselves and were made to pay as Tottenham added a third. Son’s shot from distance was spilled by Kochalski and into the path of Solanke, who tapped the ball into an empty goal.
Qarabag finally had the ball in the net after 78 minutes through Juninho, but the flag quickly went up for offside and his joy was short-lived.
Tottenham’s triumph was confirmed after three minutes of added time as they extended their record to three-straight wins in all competitions.
GK: Guglielmo Vicario – 7/10 – Made some really impressive saves to ensure Tottenham remained in the ascendancy…
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