How we rated the Spurs team in their Europa League victory.
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Tottenham Hotspur have one foot in the group stages of the 2014/15 Europa League, after Maurucio Pochettino’s side came from behind to beat Cypriot outfit AEL Limassol 2-1 away from home.
Spurs had fallen behind early on when Sardinero put the Cypriots ahead in front of a raucous home crowd, but Tottenham improved as the game continued and won it thanks to late strikes from Roberto Soldado and Harry Kane.
This is how we rated the Tottenham side after their victory:
GK) Hugo Lloris (7) – Wore the Tottenham captain’s armband for the first time and didn’t let his side down, having had no chance with the goal and made a couple of strong saves.
Kyle Naughton (6) – Recovered from his disappointing red card at Upton Park and struggled early on, but seemed to grow into the match.
Eric Dier (7) – Perfectly solid at the heart of the Tottenham defence – looks to be a good signing by Mauricio Pochettino.
Jan Vertonghen (6) – As with Dier, struggled early on as Spurs came to terms with a lively AEL side and the heat, but was dependable thereafter.
Ben Davies (6) – Hard to rate Davies, who was lively going forward throughout and caused real problems, but was suspect defensively and caught out for the goal.
Nabil Bentaleb (7) – Had a good game in central midfield, playing some impressive passive and also covering a lot of ground for his team.
Paulinho (5) – This is an important season for Paulinho and he must get better – this was a largely sluggish display by the Brazilian, topped off by losing the ball for AEL’s goal.
Lewis Holtby (6) – Looked okay, but needs to impose himself more if he is to become a genuine asset at White Hart Lane.
Andros Townsend (5) – Started quite well, but seemed to drift out of the game in the Cypriot heat and was replaced by Erik Lamela.
Harry Kane (8) – The academy graduate was excellent, scoring a goal and assisting one as he helped Spurs to turn the game on its head.
Roberto Soldado (7) – Largely anonymous upfront for Spurs, but did what he was initially signed to do – settled a tight game with a well-taken goal.
Nacer Chadli (6) – Came on for Paulinho and didn’t do any worse – but did underwhelm somewhat.
Moussa Dembele (7) – Added some muscle to the centre of the Tottenham midfield when he replaced Lewis Holtby.
Erik Lamela (9) – Tottenham’s ability to turn the game around was largely down to the introduction of Lamela, who had a huge hand in both goals and generally looked very dangerous – he just needs to replicate it in the Premier League.
Mauricio Pochettino (7) – Tottenham seemed flat early on, but over the course of the game he was able to change it with substitutions and will feel that a 2-1 win is an excellent result from a tricky away trip.