The Mirror

What fans lost in time - Tottenham undoubtedly made up for in entertainment.

Though this was not Champions League football, it was still box-office entertainment as 10-man Spurs kickstarted their Europa League campaign with an unconventional bang following Radu Dragusin's seventh-minute red card.

Spirits ahead of Tottenham's long-awaited return to Europe following a 17-month absence were swiftly dampened by intermittent rain, blustery winds and travel chaos in north London.

Qarabag, who did not arrive at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium until 7:50pm, could be slapped with a hefty fine by UEFA after the visitors were caught in traffic - delaying kick-off until 8:35pm.

Spurs appeared determined to make up for lost time but their eagerness to repay the patience of supporters quickly backfired inside the opening exchanges when Dragusin was dismissed by French referee Willy Delajod.

The 22-year-old Romanian failed to control the simplest of passes from centre-back partner Micky van de Ven, enabling hungry frontman Juninho to profit before the Brazilian was brought to ground by the desperate defender.

While Dragusin was consoled by Ange Postecoglou upon leaving the field - the stone-faced Aussie's body language told its own story. This was a rare chance for Spurs' £26.7million signing to stake a claim for a starting berth but it's hard to envisage him banging on Postecoglou's office door anytime soon.

He evidently has much to learn if he wishes to dethrone indispensable duo Van de Ven and Cristian Romero at the heart of Postecoglou's backline.

Talented teenage playmaker Lucas Bergvall was withdrawn for Destiny Udogie as Romero was serving a one-match UEFA suspension following a second yellow card against AC Milan in March 2023 and 30 seconds later, Tottenham were ahead.

Dominic Solanke drove at the Qarabag defence before sliding in Brennan Johnson, who provided another ruthless cross-goal finish to make it three goals in as many matches.

A heroic, last-ditch tackle from sub Udogie denied Toral Bayramov a leveller before electric winger Johnson went close to doubling his tally and Tottenham's advantage when goalkeeper Mateusz Kochalski came flying out of his box, however, Johnson was unable to find the target.

Though the miss did not look so bad after Qarabag's dangerman Juninho, scorer of six goals in Champions League qualifying and 31 in all competitions last season, somehow missed the target altogether following Elvin Jafarguliyev's inviting ball across the face of goal.

The half-time introduction of Dejan Kulusevski provided a clear injection of quality and on 53 minutes, his corner was eventually turned in at the back post by midfielder Pape Matar Sarr in scrappy style.

Ten-man Tottenham were still not home and hosed though as minutes later, Qarabag were awarded a penalty after Yves Bissouma chopped down Jafarguliyev. Up stepped Bayramov, who blazed the ball over the crossbar with an almighty swing of his left boot.

Qarabag continued to probe and Juninho once again went close, when he cannoned a low drive off the foot of the post on 65 minutes before Solanke put the game beyond all reach on 68 minutes.

The former Bournemouth frontman pounced to slot home a rebound, netting for the second successive match, after Heung-min Son's drive at goal was spilled. Though the goal was somewhat soured by the sight of Son dropping to the deck with what appeared to be a muscle issue. He was immediately withdrawn.

Tottenham's match with Qarabag in the Europa League has been delayed until 8.35pm after the visitors were caught up in traffic.

The visitors didn't arrive at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium until just before the match's original 8pm kick-off time.

And Spurs confirmed the delay in a statement which read: “Kick off for tonight’s fixture has been delayed due to severe travel disruption. Further information to follow.”

TNT Sports, who are broadcasting the fixture in the UK, then confirmed that the match would start at 8.35pm once Qarabag's players had been given a chance to warm up.

London Overground services from both Cheshunt and Enfield Town to White Hart Lane were suspended prior to the match, while there were also issues on the A10 in both directions.

The travel issues also affected supporters with it being noted on various media outlets that the home areas of the stadium were far from full with the revised kick-off time fast approaching.

Speaking ahead of the match, Tottenham captain Son Heung-min outlined the team's desire to go all the way in the Europa League.

Spurs missed out on the Champions League last season after they were pipped to a top-four finish - but it's not lost on Son that the Europa League still represents a chance for the club to win a major trophy.

He said: "There is no hiding - that is what we work for. It's another big competition that everyone wants to win. It's going to be tough, a lot of games and travelling - which makes it harder.

"We have got to be ready and take it seriously, because it's a massive competition."

Head coach Ange Postcoglou stated he "always" wins a trophy in his second season at clubs earlier this month after surviving a scare against Coventry City of the Championship to reach the fourth round of the Carabao Cup.

He cleared up his comments, saying: "In my 26 years of managing I’ve had success and most of that has come in the second year, not all of it. Sometimes it’s happened in the first year, sometimes in the third year.

"I don’t see why that puts extra pressure. It doesn’t put extra pressure on me because I love the fact that I’ve done that. It’s what I want to do here.

"I’d like to think that just saying the truth is the way to go forward but I think sometimes that’s too confronting for people, they’d much rather I didn’t."

Former Manchester City defender Nedum Onuoha believes is it 'strange' that VAR did not intervene when Spurs goalkeeper Gugliemo Vicario handled the ball outside of his area.

The Lilywhites' game against Brentford was the latest to garner VAR controversy as Spurs prevailed 3-1 over their London rivals. Bryan Mbuemo had put the Bees up within a minute of the game starting but Ange Postecoglou's side were able to come from behind thanks to Dominic Solanke, Brennan Johnson and James Maddison.

With the scoreline still 2-1, and under pressure from Mikkel Damsgaard, Vicario attempted to gather the ball before appearing to jab it away while outside of his box. Referee Jonathan Brooks did not blow his whistle and VAR did not act as Kristoffer Ajer and Thomas Frank were booked for their complaints.

The technology was deemed unable to be utilised as the offence was not deemed to deny a goalscoring opportunity. Onuoha nevetheless believes it would have represented a big moment in the game, with Vicario possibly being handed his marching orders.

"Earlier Gugliemo Vicario comes out of his area and makes three attempts at touching the ball," Onuoha said.

"From the angle we see the third touch, if there was another angle of it, I think they would say that it came outside the box, so that would be a red card. It is strange that the VAR has missed that, very strange, because that is a big moment in the game."

Brentford boss Frank was under no illusion the Spurs goalkeeper had touched the ball outside of his area. The 50-year-old coach did not believe it was a moment that decided the game however. and even complimented the referee.

“Not only looked. He had handled it outside the box," he said.

“That incident did not define the game. When we come here, we need to play 90 good minutes. We played 60. The margins need to go our way, and there were a few deflections and balls drop that didn’t add up to our possibility of winning the game.

“It was a mistake. It could have been a free-kick to us. It could have helped us. But, hey, you never know. I think the probability of scoring from a direct free-kick is like 0.0543. So probably not the biggest probability for scoring anyway.

“And I think John Brooks overall had a very good game. The way he handled soft fouls both ways was really good.”

Turns out the solution to Tottenham's Premier League woes was simple - they just like playing at 3pm on a Saturday.

Assisted by the incompetence of the match officials - Spurs successfully swatted Brentford aside to make it nine wins from 10 since the start of last season during their favourite kick-off slot.

But there is no denying the Bees had every right to feel aggrieved after Spurs goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario seemingly handled outside his area during the second half.

VAR insist they could not get involved as there was little proof the blunder represented the denial of a goalscoring opportunity, and the incident went unpunished before James Maddison put the game beyond the frustrated visitors' reach.

Somewhat remarkably, Brentford became just the second team in Premier League history to score in the first minute of back-to-back top-flight matches after Manchester City achieved the same feat in February 2019.

Keane Lewis-Potter probed from the left and sluggish Spurs failed to stop his pinpoint cross which was stylishly swept home on the volley by Bryan Mbeumo after just 22 seconds.

Incredibly, that was the exact same time on the clock last weekend when Yoane Wissa stunned the Etihad Stadium with a quick-fire opener at City.

And just when you began to question Tottenham's mental toughness - they issued the perfect response. Maddison pressed high, intercepting an uncharacteristically careless pass from Ethan Pinnock before his tame strike was parried into the pathway of grateful goalscorer Dominic Solanke by Mark Flekken.

Ange Postecoglou had jumped to the defence of his marquee £65million summer recruit this week - revealing he vindicated his arrival over the signing of Ivan Toney - and his rousing statement paid dividends as the 27-year-old opened his Tottenham account on eight minutes.

Son Heung-min, who looks desperately short of confidence, then teed up Brennan Johnson to smash home Spurs' second after the determined Welshman hit a late winner at Coventry in midweek.

A fine half nearly ended in embarrassment when shaky shot-stopper Vicario was pressed and mugged by Fabio Carvalho but the Italian atoned for his error by sprawling across his six-yard box to desperately deny Mbeumo.

If that was stressful - Postecoglou would have been tearing his hair out on 57 minutes when his No.1 appeared to jab the ball outside his penalty box amid pressure from Mikkel Damsgaard. Brentford were rightly furious - Kristoffer Ajer and Thomas Frank were booked for their remonstrations - but referee John Brooks and VAR did nothing.

Just to add insult to injury, moments later the erratic Italian made an excellent low stop to deny Mbeumo before displaying excellent reflexes to keep out Kevin Schade's header. Maddison then put Spurs out of sight on 85 minutes when he collected Son's pass and clipped to onrushing Flekken for his first of the season.

Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou believes Brennan Johnson can become a "significant contributor" for the club if he can navigate a difficult period.

Johnson fired Spurs into the last 16 of the Carabao Cup on Wednesday with a stoppage-time winner at Coventry, but his celebrations were muted. It had been a tough few days for the £47.5million attacker after he received social media abuse following a below-par display against Arsenal on Sunday, which resulted in Johnson deactivating his Instagram account.

Postecoglou leapt to the 23-year-old's defence on Tuesday and again offered his unwavering support a day later.

"With Brennan, you know I spoke about it (Tuesday) that he comes in, works hard at his game and when you're an attacking player, you're always kind of getting measured against certain things," Postecoglou said. "I said, if he can get through this period and just be positive and and play like he can, he can be a significant contributor to us and credit to him. He got a good goal."

Johnson's goal and an impressive second-half cameo from Djed Spence, who grabbed an 88th-minute leveller, were among the few positives for Spurs after a 2-1 victory. Attackers Wilson Odobert and Timo Werner were both forced off with suspected muscle injuries ahead of a busy period for Postecoglou's team.

The Spurs boss added: "Wilson looked fairly significant, so we'll just wait and see. Timo, again not really sure if it was just fatigue but yeah, a bit unfortunate for both of those. Obviously, both play in a similar position as well."

The absence of Odobert and Werner could open the door for 17-year-old forward Mikey Moore to get minutes off the bench in Saturday's home match with Brentford. Spurs will aim to halt a run of mixed Premier League form against the Bees after the last-gasp Carabao Cup win helped Postecoglou calm some of the growing unrest.

However, opposite number Mark Robins backed the Australian to bring success to Tottenham after his Coventry side pushed them all the way.

"If you are Tottenham Hotspur, you are probably relieved to go through at our expense," Robins said. "I think they are really well managed by the way. I think he is a top manager, Ange. The way they play is a really good way of playing, which will bring them good results, but that's the nature of where we are in life really. People want everything yesterday and it's ridiculous really."

"We already had a couple of injuries, and I had some pretty good players on the bench that I thought could make an impact, but it doesn't take away from Lucas's performance. I thought he was outstanding tonight. They they're going to play a lot of football for us and hopefully getting through tonight, whether it's 90 minutes for Archie [Gray] or you know, 60, 70 for Lucas, will put them in a good space."

Alan Shearer has told Tottenham’s “misfiring” forwards to help £65 million record signing Dominic Solanke break his duck.

And the former England captain says Spurs MUST stick with head coach Ange Postecoglou despite a spluttering start to the season yielding just one win in four games and a dispiriting north London derby defeat against depleted Arsenal.

Solanke has yet to hit the target since his big-money move from Bournemouth, but Match of the Day pundit Shearer - who once went 12 games without a goal for England before the dam burst at Euro 96 - believes the drought will break sooner or later.

But he called on Spurs captain Heung-min Son, playmaker James Maddison and winger Brennan Johnson to step up until Solanke reaches full throttle. Speaking as an ambassador for Betfair, Shearer said: “I know how it works as a centre-forward when you're struggling to get a goal and there's no doubt that once Solanke gets the first one, it'll be a huge relief for him.

“How it comes does not matter, he just needs to get that first goal and then I'm pretty sure he'll relax, calm down, and stop thinking about the price tag. He then will hopefully go on to get a few more, but that needs to come sooner rather than later for your belief and confidence as a player. Solanke has to keep getting in there and believing that it's going to change.

“Looking at Spurs’ attacking options, James Maddison and Son Heung-Min need to shoulder more responsibility, especially when Solanke isn't quite up to speed yet. Solanke’s form is understandable with the niggling injury, but there's no doubt they're misfiring in forward positions.

"Brennan Johnson has to improve too, and I'm sure he can because the ability is there, but so does Son, and so does Timo Wermer when he comes on.”

For the first time since his reign began with a 10-game unbeaten run taking Spurs to the top of the Premier League last October, Postecoglou is under pressure to turn style into substance. The 1-0 defeat against the Gunners, conceding a 16th goal from set pieces in just over a year, was a setback he could have done without.

But Shearer insisted: “Ange was brought into the football club because of his style of play and because of his beliefs. It would be crazy for Spurs or Postecoglou to change that now, and he's not going to. He plays with a high line, with his full-backs going into midfield and at times, the opposition will catch them out.

“However, from set-pieces, teams see that as an area to exploit. I don’t know whether that's the goalkeeper, or the Tottenham set-up, but he's not changing it. Let us not forget how Ange’s style worked for them in a lot of games last season and it was exciting football, but it is high risk. Sometimes fans have to be patient because it'll work one week and maybe not so much the other.

“Spurs must stick with Postecoglou, there's no doubt about it. Unfortunately, you know as a manager, and as players, that you have to deliver on the pitch and if you don't, you'll get criticised.

“Unfortunately, Tottenham haven't had a good start to the season. I admire Postecoglou’s confidence and his belief, just very much like his style of play, and that's not going to change for him.

“It was interesting when he said, 'I always win trophies in my second season', but that has been the case during his career. They are not going to win the league, so a cup competition will have to be their chance of some silverware, so they are going to have to go out and win one.

“Ange has come down from Celtic where the pressure is huge because they're a massive football club and you have to deliver there, which he did. However, in terms of the standard of football, the Premier League is chalk and cheese compared to the Scottish Premiership. There is no comparison.

“He is now coming up against better teams, players, managers, and set-ups down in England, and he knows that. He knows that the pressure is on him to deliver; he's spent a few quid and bought a centre-forward for a lot of money so he now has to get that right.

“The chairman at Spurs may prefer a top four finish, but for the players and the manager, they must value a trophy over Champions League qualification.

“In 20 years’ time, you don’t want to look back and say, ‘we got into the top four’, you would rather look back as a player or manager and remember the trophy you won. There's no doubt about that.”

Jamie O'Hara has launched a blistering attack on Tottenham's transfer policy and claimed they signed players nobody else wanted.

Ange Postecoglou's side have endured a tough start to the season and have taken just four points from as many games, with Sunday's North London derby defeat the latest setback. Spurs splashed out £55million on Dominic Solanke in the summer but he has so far failed to find the net in his two outings for his new club.

O'Hara stuck the boot into Tottenham stars following the loss to Arsenal, and now claims the players they signed haven't been good enough, insisting: "They’re signing players that no one else wants."

He told Grovesnor Sport: “The Spurs side that I played in would wipe the floor with the current team,” said O’Hara. “I’d rather have the likes of Robbie Keane, Tom Huddlestone, Aaron Lennon, Dimitar Berbatov, Peter Crouch, and Jermain Defoe over this current side.

"They wanted to get the ball and make things happen. Aaron Lennon would always want the ball and try to beat his man, Johnson looks like he never wants it! If Robbie Keane touched the ball as little as Solanke does, he’d be knocking people out in the dressing room.

“They were top players that everyone wanted when Spurs signed them, even if some did come from the Championship. No one wanted Johnson in January and no one wanted Solanke in the summer. No one wants these players but Spurs are signing them. Everyone jumps on the fact that they’re young and hungry, but has anyone actually considered whether they’re even good enough to play for Tottenham?”

Tottenham failed to qualify for this season's Champions League and are already five points off the pace in the race for the top four, while they trail leaders Manchester City by eight points.

“I’ll always back Spurs to finish in the top four, but it doesn’t look good at the moment,” said O'Hara. “They’ve only got four points from four games. It’s been a terrible start to the season, losing to Newcastle and Arsenal who are two teams that’ll both be fighting against Spurs for a top-four spot. It’s not looking good.

“Solanke needs to pull his finger out and start scoring some goals. He needs to give more to the side than just jogging around and holding the ball up. Johnson needs to actually look for the ball and want it. Kulusevski has been rubbish since we signed him and Son looks past it. As for Romero, everyone goes on about him being a World Cup winner, but his defending is woeful and he costs the team a goal almost every week.”

Jamie O'Hara has stuck the boot into Tottenham stars following Sunday's North London derby defeat.

Gabriel's header proved the difference as an Arsenal side ravaged by injuries ran out 1-0 winners to claim bragging rights and get their Premier League title bid back on track. Former Spurs midfielder O'Hara has hit out at manager Ange Postecoglou and his troops following the surrender.

O’Hara told Grovesnor Sport: “I’d give Ange Postecoglou a 3/10 for the way he managed the game against Arsenal. I’m not sure what to think of his tactics at the moment because Tottenham look so soft and are conceding goals for fun. The set-pieces are a disgrace both in attack and defence; he needs to work on that.

“I’d give Guglielmo Vicario a 2/10, he was embarrassing from set-pieces and he looks like he’s going to give the ball away every time he plays out from the back. Destiny Udogie and Pedro Porro played alright and didn’t make too many mistakes, I’d give both a 6/10. I would add, though, that Porro is better than Ben White. Micky van de Ven was their best player, he was really good. I’d give him a 7/10 because they lost, but he’s too good for Spurs at the moment. Cristian Romero is another I’d give a 3/10 to, he got beaten by Gabriel for the goal and he seems to gift the opposition a goal every week.

“I feel sorry for James Maddison because he tried to make things happen. He doesn’t hide and he wants to get on the ball, I’d give him a 5/10. It’s hard to remember anything Rodrigo Bentancur even did in the game, he was non-existent. I can’t give him any more than a 4/10. The same can be said for Dejan Kulusevski, he looks like he’s blowing every time he gets the ball! Another 4/10.

“Heung-min Son was non-existent, I think he’s past his best now. I’d give him a 3/10 for his performance. I do like Dominic Solanke but he’s been disappointing. I hate to be harsh on him but it has to be a 2/10. Brennan Johnson was the worst player, he is woeful. He was nowhere near good enough and he was hiding, but he never produces when he does get the ball. I’d give him a 2/10 as well.”

Tottenham will be hoping to bounce back from the defeat when they travel to Coventry in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night.

Tottenham Hotspur striker Dominic Solanke has played alongside some of football's biggest names - but has hailed Harry Kane as the best finisher he's ever seen.

The forward, who broke Spurs' transfer record, is no stranger to the limelight, having had stints at Chelsea and Liverpool. Solanke was once dubbed the next big thing by Jose Mourinho during his days in Chelsea's youth ranks. He made a solitary appearance for the Blues before he moved on to Liverpool, where he played 27 times under Jurgen Klopp but found the net just once.

After a slow start at Bournemouth, Solanke eventually found his stride, doubtless drawing from experiences gained at Premier League winners Chelsea and Champions League runners-up Liverpool. This culminated in the 27-year-old scoring 19 league goals for the Cherries last term and prompting his big-money move to Spurs.

Solanke could name a star-studded combined XI of all his former teammates, having trained alongside plenty of world-class players. However, the striker rates Harry Kane above all his illustrious colleagues for his level of finishing.

In an interview with Sky Sports, Solanke didn't hesitate to single out the England captain: "Obviously Harry Kane. His finishing is just one of the best-ever. We see that all the time and his finishing is just incredible."

This praise speaks volumes, especially considering Solanke's former teammates include Liverpool's scoring sensation Mohamed Salah and other heavyweights like Eden Hazard, Didier Drogba, and Diego Costa from his Chelsea days.

Solanke is now tasked with replicating Harry Kane's prolific goal record for Tottenham - 280 goals in 435 games - as well as helping to inspire Ange Postecoglou's side to lift a trophy. Meanwhile, when asked about his colleagues. the forward sang the praises of Spurs captain Son Heung-min.

HAVE YOUR SAY! Is there a better finisher than Harry Kane? Tell us in the comments section below

"It's something so rare to be that good on right foot and left foot, not many players in the world can do that," Solanke said. "To be that two-footed and be great at finishing with both of them is incredible. He's a great leader, one of the nicest guys I've met, to be honest. On the pitch, you see what he does on the weekends and it's exactly the same in training."

Conversely, at the defensive end, Solanke puts his ex-Liverpool colleague Virgil van Dijk on a pedestal as the most formidable defender he's battled with. His striker instincts were sharpened through duels with John Terry in Chelsea training, but Solanke believes that Van Dijk stands alone.

"He's just got everything, big, strong, good on the ball, aggressive," Solanke praised. "I think he's definitely one of the best defenders in our time and I'd say he's probably the most difficult."

Ange Postecoglou turned up the pressure on himself ahead of a huge week for Tottenham.

‌Spurs boss Postecoglou insisted after his team’s defeat to Arsenal in the North London derby that he ALWAYS wins a trophy in his second season. Tottenham go to Coventry City in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night and cannot afford a repeat of last year when they went out at the first hurdle.

‌Postecoglou saw his team lose at Fulham on penalties and that haunted him for the rest of the campaign as any chance of silverware had gone before the end of January with their FA Cup defeat to Manchester City. Tottenham also face a tricky home game with Brentford in the Premier League next Saturday and cannot afford another slip up.

‌Their underwhelming start has left Spurs in 13th place in the Premier League table and the expectation among fans is that they will get back into the Champions League next year. That should be achievable when you consider that Tottenham have spent big since Postecoglou arrived and their record £65million deal for Dominic Solanke this summer has underlined the club’s ambition.

Tottenham are back in Europe this year with the return of the Europa League and that gives them another crack at silverware. It is 16 years since Spurs won a trophy - their last was the 2008 League Cup - and Tottenham fans quickly took to Big Ange in his first season in charge thanks to his attacking style of play.

But it feels like the honeymoon is over and it is time for Postecoglou to deliver this season and their indifferent start has not exactly inspired confidence. However, Postecoglou’s bold claim about always winning in his second season does stand up if you look at his club jobs with South Melbourne, Brisbane Roar, Melbourne Victory, Yokohama F. Marinos and Celtic.

‌But it will be arguably far tougher to repeat it with Tottenham - after all Celtic dominate Scottish football - this season. Realistically, getting into the Champions League places - and fifth may be enough - is more likely to be a barometer of success or failure for Postecoglou this season.‌

Your turn! Will Tottenham beat Coventry City? Let us know your score prediction in the comments section

But it is Postecoglou himself and his swashbuckling approach - always demanding first place - who is setting the standards higher. His first target must be to improve defending set pieces and, while he may not admit it publicly, they have spent far more time working on it this summer.‌

Tottenham keeper Guglielmo Vicario has insisted they will analyse their defensive mistakes as he also heaped praise on Postecoglou after their North London derby defeat to Arsenal. Vicario said: “It is tough to find a solution. Of course in our meeting we will analyse, try to fix it and try to do better. It is tough because in this case small details can change the result and the outcome of the games.

‌“We have a brilliant coach, brilliant staff that can help us so we just need to stay together and believe in our football because we played such good games until now.

“It was a big defeat, we take the responsibility for that and now we have to prepare our best level for the next two games. We will fix it and take the rewards in the future. If we stick together, play this football with our focus, I think we will have a lot of victories this season.”