Tottenham 4-2 Olympiacos: Report, Ratings & Reaction as Spurs Secure Place in Knockout Stages

A resurgent Spurs fought back from two goals down to beat Olympiacos 4-2 under the lights of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, securing their place in the knockout stages.

The visitors started the game brilliantly and silenced the home fans early on as Youssef El-Arabi smashed the ball into the back of the net after some brilliant individual play on the edge of the penalty area.

The Greek side continued to dominate the game, and they managed to make it 2-0 just 20 minutes in thanks to Ruben Semedo, who poked home after some shocking Spurs defending from a corner.

Spurs were looking short of ideas, forcing Jose Mourinho to haul Eric Dier off before the half hour mark, replacing him with the more attack-minded Christian Eriksen. The gamble paid off

on the stroke of half time as ​Dele Alli pounced on a terrible error from Yassine Meriah to tap home, making the Special One’s half-time team talk that little but easier.

The hosts came out the traps quickly in the second half, and ​Harry Kane was the man to draw the sides level after good work from Lucas Moura. Spurs continued to pile on the pressure in what was an end-to-end game, and finally took the lead when Serge Aurier smashed home superbly on the half-volley. 

They soon made it four when Kane headed home a delicious cross from Eriksen, sending the home fans into delirium.

Harry Kane

Victory for Spurs sees them qualify alongside table toppers Bayern, ahead of their clash in the final group game in two weeks time.


TOTTENHAM​

Key Talking Point

With Mourinho now at the helm, it was a chance for Spurs to show once again that they had turned a corner and secure a place in the knockout stages of the Champions League.

The Lilywhites started the game poorly, but they were a completely different team in the second half. They played with drive and energy and Olympiacos simply couldn’t cope.

FBL-EUR-C1-TOTTENHAM-OLYMPIAKOS

It is clear that Mourinho has work to do on the defence, but offensively, he has a lot of top class players – led by the inspirational Kane.


Player Ratings

Starting XI: Gazzaniga (7); Aurier (8), Alderweireld (6), Sanchez (8), Rose (5); Dier (4), Winks (6); Lucas (7); Alli (7), Son (7); Kane (8*).

Substitutes: Eriksen (7), Sissoko (6), Ndombele (6).


STAR PLAYER

Davinson Sanchez and Serge Aurier were brilliant, but the star man has to be Harry Kane. The Spurs captain seems to have regained the sharpness that he was starting to lack under Mauricio Pochettino, and his all-round play is truly back to it’s best.

As well as that, the England striker bagged two goals, making him the quickest player to ever get to 20 Champions League goals. The perfect reward for a great performance.


Olympiacos

Player Ratings

Starting XI: Sa (6); Elabdellaoui (6), Semedo (7), Meriah (5), Tsimikas (5); Camara (6), Guilherme (6), Bouchalakis (5); Poudence (7), El-Arabi (7), Masouras (6).

Substitutes: Valbuena (5), Randjelovic (6), Guerrero (5)


Looking Ahead

Tottenham return to Premier League action on Saturday, as they host Eddie Howe’s unpredictable Bournemouth side. They then head to Old Trafford as Mourinho takes on Manchester United in a mouthwatering reunion.

Olympiacos, meanwhile, have a huge fixture coming up on Sunday as they host the side who are level on points with them at the top of the Greek Super League table, PAOK.