Tottenham got back to winning ways by routing Copenhagen in the Champions League.
Tottenham maintained their unbeaten start to the Champions League as they eased to an emphatic 4-0 win over Copenhagen.
Spurs took advantage of two goalkeeping errors from Copenhagen’s Dominik Kotarski to take command of the contest thanks to goals from Brennan Johnson and Wilson Odobert.
Johnson’s second-half red card looked as if it might turn the game in Copenhagen’s favour. Instead, it only served as a source of second-half inspiration for Thomas Frank’s men.
Micky van de Ven put the game beyond doubt with a remarkable box-to-box run capped by a confident finish from Tottenham’s surprise top scorer, before Joao Palhinha made it 4-0 as Spurs, following draws with Bodo/Glimt and Monaco, claimed their first Champions League since the opening matchday of the league phase.
With eight points from their first four games, Tottenham are excellently placed to progress to the knockout rounds, and are firmly in the mix for a top-eight finish that would send them straight into the last 16.
Tottenham pounce on Kotarski howlers
Tottenham dictated play in the early stages without significantly threatening the Copenhagen goal, but they were gifted in the 20th minute by Kotarski, whose decision to rush from his goal to try to intercept Xavi Simons throughball backfired spectacularly, allowing Johnson to roll the ball into an empty net from a tight angle.
Spurs should have put the game to bed in the first half, but the profligacy of Randal Kolo Muani prevented them from doing so.
The on-loan Paris Saint-Germain forward fired narrowly wide of the near post from close range following neat link-up play between Simons and Odobert, and then headed a superb Simons cross over the bar with the entirety of the goal to aim at.
Ultimately, though, his missed opportunities were never in danger of being punished, and six minutes into the second half Kolo Muani played a huge role in Spurs doubling their lead.
Again Kotarski was at fault as he rushed out of his box to deal with an aimless ball forward, only to see his clearance charged down by Kolo Muani. The ball looped up into the air, and Kolo Muani collected it with a sublime touch before squaring for Odobert to slot home.
Johnson sees red, but Van de Ven seals it in style
Six minutes after Odobert’s goal, Johnson gave Copenhagen a lifelin when his rash challenge on Marcos Lopez saw him dismissed. Johnson was initially booked, but the yellow card was upgraded to red following a VAR check.
Yet that adversity emboldened Tottenham, and their fearlessness was wonderfully illustrated by Van de Ven, who was inexplicably given the freedom to roam almost the length of the pitch unchallenged in the 64th minute, with Kotarski helpless to stop him scoring one of the goals of the season.
Three minutes later Copenhagen were caught on the counter again, Palhinha’s far-post finish helped on its way into the net by Kotarski after Cristian Romero teed up the Portugal international to add further gloss to the scoreline.
Richarlison hit the crossbar with a header and did the same from the penalty spot late on after Dane Scarlett went down in the area late on, but his frustration was only a footnote as Tottenham avoided a third straight defeat and put last weekend’s miserable loss to Chelsea behind them.
