Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.
Key events
70 minutes: Son sits on the turf and goes away. A bit of worry for Postecoglou. There is certainly no need to risk keeping it on. Werner and Bentancur come on – Bissouma also off.
GOAL! Mab shoots from the edge of the box, forcing Kochalski down to his left but it palms straight at Solanke, giving him an easy task.
GOAL! Tottenham 3-0 Qarabag (Solanke 68)
The striker reacts fastest to take advantage of a rebound at home.
68 minutes: Qarabag make a few changes to pass the time. Bayramov leaves, Addai is on. Leandro Andrade replaces Romao.
67 minutes: Trash puts pressure on themselves. I feel at 2-0 up maybe they don’t need three strikers on the pitch. Make life easy for yourself, Ange.
65 minutes: Juninho makes a smart run into the box and fires a shot at the near post that Vicario tips wide. I have no idea how Qarabag have failed to score.
63 minutes: Spurs cause themselves problems by giving the ball away in midfield. Maybe Spurs could do with an extra midfielder and have Son and Kulusevski up front.
61 minutes: Bayramov jinks and turns on the edge of the box and heads over. Vicario reads it and advises the powerful shot over.
Vicario catches a cross and runs into Juninho. It’s getting a little spicy out there.
59 minutes: Discharge to Spurs. Now time to hold their nerve. Instead, they give the ball back to Qarabag and Vicario is forced into a decent save.
Spurs go down the other end and Solanke has a chance but sends his shot straight at the keeper.
57 minutes: PENALTY MISSED! BAYRAMOV IS TRANSFERRED.
PUNISHMENT! Qarabag are awarded a penalty after Bissouma challenges Jafarguliyev inside the box. It’s soft but it’s probably a pen. The midfielder also gets a booking.
GOAL! The keeper flaps at the cross and Sarr is left in space, he takes aim and, through a deflection, doubles the lead. Big moment in the game.
GOAL! Tottenham 2-0 at home (R 53)
Kulusevski whips in a corner which reaches Sarr at the back post from where he volleys home.
52 minutes: Kulusevski has his first chance to threaten on the right. He shows quick feet and sends the ball into a corridor of uncertainty but it is turned behind.
51 minutes: Spurs get a corner on the left but it comes to nothing.
Down the other end Jafarguliyev pinged in another dangerous, low cross but Vicario grabbed it.
49 minutes: Possession isn’t really the problem for Spurs, as they get plenty. The issue reaches the transitions because Qarabag are flying on the break and it is difficult to stop.
47 minutes: Can Spurs survive another half of playing with a very high line? Either way, Postecoglou will not change the plan.
Second half
Here we go again!
Johnson off for Spurs, Kulusevski on.
“I can’t believe what I’ve seen tonight,” said Shaun Tooze. “I watched about 90% of the Rangers game in Malmo before this one and Ranger could, or rather should got 5. This first half has carried on the same way. How Qarabag haven’t got on the scoresheet here is beyond belief.
“A night of missed golden opportunity. Absolutely unfathomable.
“Anyway, sorry, just blew my mind.”
Some football has already been completed.
Half time: Tottenham 1-0 Qarabag
Spurs are down to 10 men but have the advantage thanks to Johnson. Qarabag has enjoyed the best game thanks to Dragusin’s being very stupid and being sent off.
46 minutes: Davies loses the ball inside his own half, Juninho kicks it away and it’s through until Vicario wins it back 30 yards from his own goal.
45 minutes: One minute added on.
44 minutes: More chances for Qarabag. Silva whips in a cross but Van de Ven is there to block the header. The subsequent shot of Benzia flashes wide.
I doubt we’ll get Pedro Porro on for Gray at half-time.
42 minutes: Qarabag can cut pace, that’s for sure. This time Van de Ven needs to hold Benzia up, giving him a corner kick. Spurs need to see this through to half time.
40 minutes: What a loss! Another attack down the left allows Jafarguliyev to place the ball on a plate for Juninho to tap home but he messes up at the end, sending a terrible shot wide.
38 minutes: Qarabag seem to think Gray at right-back is a weak spot because Spurs are targeting him thanks to the extra man. A hard day’s work for the teenager who is a midfielder by trade.
36 minutes: Qarabag flash the ball across the box and Juninho is ready to pounce but Vicario reads the danger and dives to palm the cross before the Brazilian pounces.
34 minutes: Poor Bergvall is shown on the bench. His coat is pulled up over his face and he looks miserable. We’ve all been there, mate.
32 minutes: The 700 Qarabag fans have acquired many Azerbaijan flags. They do their best to make some noise.
30 minutes: Benzia tries to bring down a cross in the box but has the ball taken off his feet before he can shoot. There is plenty of threat in this Qarabag team.
28 minutes: What does the goalkeeper do? Kochalski places it outside the area for a long pass over the top but Johnson gets to it first, goes past the keeper and aims, only to see his shot go wide.
26 minutes: Spurs still have most of the ball but do not create a second chance.
24 minutes: Gray limps just behind the dirty. I am not sure that Postecoglou wants to make a second change at this early stage.
22 minutes: Qarabag broke five on three but Spurs are clinging to a last ditch challenge or two to catch them up and win the ball back. This could be a fun night.
Gray being cleaned on the right wing. Advantage is played until Jafarguliyev is booked for the foul.
Krishnamoorthy says: “Your mention of Johnson Solanke and his Son sounds like a law firm that seems capable of engineering the names in every small letter on their shirts.”
20 minutes: Bayramov is played through on goal and looks set to take the ball past Vicario but Udogie comes back, gets his shoulder and blocks the Qarabag man who stumbles in the box.
18 minutes: Johnson, Solanke and Son put a lot of pressure on the Qarabag defence. No chance for them to rest.
16 minutes: Apologies, Udogie has moved to left back with Davies alongside Van de Ven.
15 min: Martin Gamage says: “Yeah, that was really a no-brainer piece of defense against Dragusin. And that early in the game, if you mess up defending him like that, let the forward go and see if the keeper can deal with him. No point spending 80 odd minutes with ten men.”
14 minutes: It will still be a long night out for the Spurs players out there as they are a light man. Udogie has settled in at centre-back. Spurs now 4-4-1 with wingers staying high.
GOAL! Spurs win the ball back high up, Solanke slips a pass through to Johnson who finds the bottom corner.
GOAL! Tottenham 1-0 Qarabag (Johnson, 12)
Three out of three for the winger.
12 minutes: Will Qarabag be more proactive in their attacking play or accept that there will be more room to exploit on the break. They certainly put in the hard yards when it comes to weighing.
Udogie replaces Bergvall. Such a shame for teenagers but needs must. Stupid dragusin.
10 minutes: Udogie is already ready to come forward. Gray Sacrifice?
RED CARD! Dragusin
8 minutes: Juninho hunts down Dragusin on the halfway line, takes the ball from him and is through on goal until the Romanian takes him down. What a useless bit of defense and thought. Postecoglou shakes his head.
(Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
source link https://www.theguardian.com/football/live/2024/sep/26/tottenham-v-qarabag-europa-league-live
