Tottenham Hotspur beat Copenhagen to climb up to seventh in the Champions League table.
With 18 minutes on the clock, Brennan Johnson was played in behind by Xavi Simons. Goalkeeper Dominik Kotarski committed, but Johnson beat him to the ball before finishing from a tight angle.
In the 50th minute, Kotarski delayed when a ball was played in behind his defence. Randal Kolo Muani pressured him before nonchalantly bringing it down and playing in Wilson Odobert, who slotted home to double Tottenham’s lead. There was, however, a potential mishap for Spurs just over five minutes later when Johnson was sent off for a studs-up challenge on Marcos Lopez.
But those doubts were silenced emphatically when, in the 63rd minute, defender Micky van de Ven scored a superb goal. He picked the ball up outside his box before charging up the field, beating several Copenhagen players and then finishing brilliantly. There was then even more brilliance from Spurs in the 67th minute, culminating in Joao Palhinha giving the hosts their fourth after Cristian Romero found himself furthest forward for Spurs.
With the game already won, Spurs could have added a fifth in stoppage time after a lovely run from Dane Scarlett led to a penalty. Richarlison, however, struck the bar with his spot kick.
The Athletic’s Jack Pitt-Brooke breaks down the key talking points from the game.
Van de Ven’s wondergoal not really a surprise?
We always knew that Van de Ven had this in his locker.
He is a unique athlete, implausibly quick and strong for such a talented footballer. At Tottenham, he has often run like this, cutting through opposition defences, but always ending with an assist for someone else. At the start of last season, he did it for Son Heung-min against Everton, and then did it for Brennan Johnson at Old Trafford.
When he started his run here, on the edge of his own box, Tottenham needed some fresh energy. They were 2-0 up but had just gone down to 10 men. They needed to stay on the front foot. Van de Ven started to burst forward, burning up the turf. The crowd stood up and held their breath.
What made this so special was that Van de Ven did not do this for anyone other than himself. He did not need to square the ball to another forward. He had so much momentum, so much belief, he could thump it past Kotarski himself.
It was the perfect climax to a thrilling few seconds, a goal reminiscent of Son’s famous run here against Burnley in 2019. But even more special for having been scored by a centre-back.
Are Udogie and Odobert the answer on Tottenham’s left?
One of the many problems Spurs have encountered this season has been on their left. With Djed Spence playing on his unnatural side, they have struggled to stretch the game and often get clogged up when they try to go forward. But finally, they looked expansive and dangerous again here when attacking down that side.
This was Destiny Udogie’s first start for a month, and it was immediately clear how much of a difference he made. With Odobert also back on the left wing, Spurs had two direct, dynamic, technical threats. Sometimes Udogie would stay wide and Odobert would attack on the inside. Sometimes it was the other way round. But Copenhagen never knew how to cope. Udogie had a shot saved in the first half, while Odobert played a beautiful flick for a move that Kolo Muani should have finished.
But it was in the second half when Odobert turned the game Spurs’ way. He scored the second soon after the break, turning in Kolo Muani’s pass. And then for the fourth goal, he had the confidence and speed to drive from deep, leading the charge himself, before finding Romero, who squared for Palhinha to finish.
Udogie and Odobert put in their best performances of the season, displays that fans will hope point to a brighter future.
Simons’ best showing in a Spurs shirt?
Every Spurs player needed a big performance tonight, but no one more than Xavi Simons. He is still on the learning curve in the Premier League — as we saw against Chelsea — but this was easily Simons’ best game for Tottenham.
With so many leading players out, there was a particular responsibility on Simons to create chances, but he could not have done that any better than this. Floating in that No 10 space behind Kolo Muani, he always wanted the ball and tried things when he got it. He made the opening goal with a perfect through ball to Johnson.
Just before the break, Simons could have made two more. First, there was a flick to Kolo Muani, who forced wide, and then a clever cross from the right, which Kolo Muani headed over the bar. But both of those misses were applauded by the crowd, who knew that they were watching Simons on song. And he received a standing ovation as he was taken off as a substitute.
The challenge, of course, will be replicating this in the more competitive Premier League. But this performance felt like a genuine lift-off.
What did Frank say?
Asked whether Van de Ven’s goal was the best he’d seen from a defender, he said: “I definitely need to think a little bit about that. But it seems like we had Lionel Messi turned into Micky van de Ven, roaring down from his own goal all the way to the other end and scored a fantastic goal. I think he’s our top scorer in all competitions, so he can keep going. He can keep walking past me if he’s angry after a game!”
What next for Spurs?