TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 5 (2) | NS MURA 1 (0) |
Date : – 30th September 2021 | Kick off : – 20.00 |
Competition : – Europa Conference | Venue : – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium |
Crowd : – 25,121 |
Referee : – Yigal Frid (ISR) | Linesmen : – Matityahu Yakobov (ISR); Omer Barbiro (ISR) |
Fourth official : – Daniel Bar Natan (ISR) | |
Weather : – Wet and chilly | |
NS Mura kicked off the first half attacking the Park Lane end | |
Playing time : – 90 + 6 minutes |
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR | NS MURA | ||
GOAL-SCORERS | |||
Dele (p) 03m 25s | Kous 52m 04s | ||
Lo Celso 07m 13s | |||
Kane 67m 22s | |||
Kane 75m 55s | |||
Kane 86m 47s | |||
CARDS | |||
Skipp (foul on Lorbek) 61 | Obradovic (foul on Dele) 5 | ||
Marosa (foul on Moura) 75 | |||
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR | NS MURA | ||
22. | Pierluigi GOLLINI | 69. | Matko OBDRADOVIC |
2. | Matt DOHERTY | 21. | Zan KARNICNIK |
4. | Cristian ROMERO | 9. | Matic MARUSKO |
14. | Joe RODON | 30. | Jan GOREC |
3. | Sergio REGUILON ( 12. EMERSON Royal 81) | ||
11. | Ziga KOUS ( 77. Stanisa MANDIC 75) | ||
20. | DELE Alli (c) (p) ( 7. Heung-Min SON 60) | 14. | Nick LORBEC ( 32. Samsondin OURO 75) |
29. | Oliver SKIPP ( 5. Pierre-Emile HOJBJERG 69) | 7. | Alen KOZAR (c) |
8. | Harry WINKS | 23. | Klemen STURM |
18. | Giovani LO CELSO | 10. | Tomi HORVAT ( 33. Mitja LOTRIC 75) |
44. | Dane SCARLETT ( 10. Harry KANE 59 ) | ||
11. | BRYAN Gil ( 27. Lucas MOURA 60) | 19. | Nardin MULAHUSEJNOVIC ( 27. Ziga SKOFLEK 63) |
17. | Amadej MAROSA ( 2. Kai CIPOT 85) | ||
Substitutes | Substitutes | ||
40. | Brandon AUSTIN | 12. | Lan ERJAVEC |
25. | Japhet TANGANGA | 90. | Marko ZAOLKAR |
6. | Davinson SANCHEZ | 3. | Klemen PUCKO |
15. | Eric DIER | 13. | Marin KARAMARKO |
28. | Tanguy NDOMBELE | 24. | Tio CIPOT |
42. | Harvey WHITE | 44. | Azur MAHMIC |
49. | Tobi OMOLE | 47. | Mihael KLEPAC |
Manager : – Nuno Espirito Santo | Manager : – Ante Simundza |
Kit Supplier : – Nike | Kit Supplier : – adidas |
Shirt Sponsor : – AIA | Shirt Sponsor : – Generali |
Shirt Sleeve Sponsor : – cinch | Shirt Sleeve Sponsor : – None |
Colours : – Shirts : – White Shorts : – White Socks : – White |
Colours : – Shirts : – Black Shorts : – Black Socks : – Black |
MATCH REPORT |
Although Spurs had quickly gone 2-0 ahead within eight minutes, a spectacular goal by Mura after half-time forced Nuno Espirito Santo into a triple change that eventually saw Spurs through to a 5-1 win over NS Mura of Slovenia with the aid of a Harry Kane hat-trick.
Starting with a younger line-up having rested a few of the big names, Tottenham set about Mura with a fast start to the match. Some loose control halfway inside their own half saw Mura gift the ball to Gio Lo Celso, who quickly moved it on to Dane Scarlett in the centre-forward’s position on the edge of the penalty area. He had the ball nipped off his toe, but it went further forward, where Dele was alert to try and flick it past the on-rushing goalkeeper, but Obradovic put into the practice the old adage of “take everything with you”, but forgot about the ball and bundled Dele over. Without VAR in operation, the referee from Israel had no hesitation in pointing to the spot. The Slovenian side tried to argue the toss, but it was as clear a penalty as you will see and Dele took the ball, put it on the spot and shot low, just out of the keeper’s reach to his right and Spurs had a fourth minute lead. A ball in the box was cleared away when Scarlett went down under a challenge, but only about 30 yards out on the left to Harry Winks. The Spurs midfielder lifted it forward to an area where Dele, Scarlett and Lo Celso were. Dele tried to head it but didn’t get a touch and with the ball bouncing high, Gio took the ball into the area and lashed a rising shot high over the keeper to find the top corner of the net on the other side and give Spurs a 2-0 lead. It was a very good finish with not a lot to aim at and it was the start Tottenham needed to banish any thoughts of the last few games. Mura were resorting to some “untidy” challenges to stop Spurs making more of their possession. Lo Celso was the main recipient of the heavy tackling, but Cristian Romero also felt the force of a few tackles as he brought the ball out from the back. The visiting team did create a chance after 10 minutes, when a cross from the left was met by Mulausejnovic’s flying header, but he got power into it but not direction and the ball went well wide. We were getting the ball off Mura quite easily (or they were giving it to us), but the play around the box was getting too intricate, inevitably finding an opponent’s boot or leg in the way preventing Scarlett getting much decent service. Dele was at the heart of this, trying to regain the form of previous seasons, but maybe he was trying a little too hard, as one great run down the left wing ended when he tried to take on one too many of the black shirts. The build-up which had been so sharp at the start of the game slowed down allowing Mura to pack men behind the ball and when we worked the ball on the right, Doherty was inclined to turn back instead of taking on his man on the outside. Sergio Reguilon let fly from just outside the area but couldn’t keep it down, then he found Oliver Skipp with a pull back with the ball then fed through to Dele who brought a save from Obradovic, moving to his left. Doherty did put a long cross in after Skipp played the ball in front of him and Dele had to reach to get his head to it, but it looped at goal with the keeper taking the ball with ease. In fact, it was Skipp who went closest when he intercepted the pass outside the Mura box and struck a low shot, but he dragged it a bit and the ball bobbled a yard wide, when a shot on target would have found the net with the goalkeeper unable to react. Dane Scarlett was mostly receiving the ball with his back to goal, which allowed him few chances to show what he can do, but one turn left his marker standing and only a recovering tackle by Lorbek prevented him getting his shot away. Bryan had the last shot of the half, taking a pass from Winks and running at the defence, but his resulting shot was weak and was blocked. So, half-time and two goals to the good, but the next goal in the match could be crucial. As it was, it was Mura who got it and it did prove to be the turning point in the game. A corner came in from their left and Scarlett rose well to head it away. It went a couple of yards out of the area to the Mura midfielder Kous, who struck a controlled volley that went straight and just inside Gollini’s left hand post without any hope of the keeper reaching it. It was a fine goal that got applause from the Spurs fans and the small band of Mura fans went wild. That hadn’t been in the Tottenham game plan and with 38 minutes to play, we needed to respond. Unfortunately, any attempt to get through the Mura defence was ineffective, as passes were over-hit or were too chancy, leaving Reguilon to strike a shot that was deflected wide for a corner as the best opportunity we created in this spell. Doherty was unmarked form the corner, but planted his header over the bar. The changes that turned the game Tottenham’s way came around the hour, when Kane, Son and Moura replaced, Dele, Bryan and Scarlett. Very quickly the tempo of the game changed, with quick incisive passing pushing Mura back towards their own goal. Lo Celso played the ball for Son to pull it back into the area from the left and Kane almost stumbled onto it, allowing the keeper to come out to dive at his feet, with both players going down and the keeper coming off worse. It was ironic, but justified, that Oliver Skipp was the first player since the penalty to receive a yellow card, over-reaching for the ball and getting Lorbek’s shin instead. It was a free-kick that almost created Tottenham’s next chance, with Kane’s quick thinking curling the ball in behind the defence for Son, but Obradovic just got there first to grab the ball. When Moura and Kane combined in the 68th minute, it brought Tottenham’s third goal and eased any growing pressure. Lucas threaded a pass along the grass into the area and Harry got behind his marker to slide in and poke the ball on the stretch across Obdradovic. 3-1 looked a lot better than 2-1 and a simple piece of play opened up the Mura defence to produce the goal. Marosa was presented with the ball when Winks slipped in the centre circle and he was free to run in on goal, but luckily for Spurs he slipped as he reached the penalty area, allowing Romero to take the ball away from him. The Mura’s player next part in the match was to pick up a yellow card for a crude tackle on Moura and after a triple Mura substitution, the change didn’t really work out for them. When an attack foundered on the rock of the Spurs defence, Reguilon played a low ball upfield to Lo Celso, who turned it around the corner immediately to put Son away on the left with a lot of space after he hurdled a tackle from a Mura player flying in. Looking up, he laid the ball square into the middle of the goal where Kane side-footed home from just outside the six-yard box. The rain that had fallen more or less throughout the game had slowed the pitch down and the keeper did well to spread himself and get a foot to the ball, but there was no way he was going to stop it. Suddenly, the team looked much more confident and after some passing back and forth across the box, Gio lifted the ball over the back line and Sergio ran onto it, but it was in the air and although he headed it on, the ball wouldn’t come down for him to allow him to shoot. It was Lo Celso who created the fifth Spurs goal with a neat pass through a Mura player’s legs that picked out Kane’s run from left to right behind a sleeping defender and he stopped it with his left foot before he turned the ball to the keeper’s right with his right foot to find the side of the goal left open and to rack up another hat-trick. VAR might have had a careful look at it, but Harry was marginally onside when the ball was played and finished clinically. The change that the three substitutes had made, not only in terms of goals, but also in terms of tempo and keeping things crisp and clean, had completed a demolition job, which for long periods looked as though the win might have only been by a couple of goals. And goals could be critical in this group as Mura are the whipping boys and with Rennes beating Vitesse with ten men, they join Tottenham at the top of the group with Spurs marginally ahead on goal difference, with Rennes to play Mura next. So the equation is simple. Win all our matches and we are through. That could be a possibility, but it looks like it might need our first team to do it. Ted Maul |
MATCH NOTES |
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OTHER RESULTS | |||
GROUP A | |||
LASK (AUS) | 0 | Maccabi Tel-Aviv (ISR) | 2 |
Alashkert (ARM) | 2 | HJK Helsinki (FIN) | 4 |
GROUP B | |||
Partizan Belgrade (SER) | 2 | Flora Tallin (EST) | 0 |
KAA Gent (BEL) | 2 | Anorthosis Famagusta (CYP) | 0 |
GROUP C | |||
Zorya Luhansk (UKR) | 0 | AS Roma (ITA) | 3 |
CSKA Sofia (BUL) | 0 | Bodo/Glimt (NOR) | 0 |
GROUP D | |||
CFR Cluj (ROM) | 1 | Randers FC (DEN) | 1 |
AZ Alkmaar (HOL) | 1 | FK Jablonec (CZE) | 0 |
GROUP E | |||
1. FC Union Berlin (GER) | 3 | Maccabi Haifa (ISR) | 0 |
Feyenoord (HOL) | 2 | Slavia Prague (CZE) | 1 |
GROUP F | |||
PAOK Salonika (GRE) | 1 | Slovan Bratislava (SVK) | 1 |
FC Copenhagen (DEN) | 3 | Lincoln Red Imps (MAL) | 1 |
GROUP G | |||
Vitesse Arnhem (HOL) | 1 | Stade Rennais (FRA) | 2 |
GROUP H | |||
FC Basel (SWI) | 4 | Kairat Almaty (KAZ) | 2 |
Omonia Nicosia FC (CYP) | 0 | Qarabag (AZE) | 0 |
Europa Conference League – Group G
Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | For | Against | Points | Goal difference | ||
1 | Tottenham Hotspur | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 4 | +4 |
2 | Rennes | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 4 | +1 |
3 | Vitesse Arnhem | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 3 | +1 |
4 | NS Mura | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 0 | -6 |