Tottenham marked their Champions League return with a scrappy but valuable 1-0 win over Villarreal at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. An early own goal was all it took to separate the sides, as Spurs got their European campaign off to the right start while Villarreal’s hoodoo against English clubs continued, Softfootball reports.
The home crowd barely had time to settle into their seats before Spurs struck. Just four minutes in, Lucas Bergvall whipped in a delightful cross that completely unsettled delightful cross that completely unsettled Villarreal’s backline, and goalkeeper Luiz Júnior could only fumble it into his own net.
It wasnt the finest of goals, but Spurs and the home fans wouldn’t mind a bit. The early lead, however, sparked Villarreal into life. Former Arsenal winger Nicolas Pépé, a familiar face in north London during his time at arch rivals Arsenal, almost silenced the home fans with his trademark cut-inside-and-shoot effort that curled narrowly wide.
Pépé looked sharp all evening and nearly punished Spurs again when a poor clearance fell at his feet, this time he went for a clever pass to Tajon Buchanan, but the Canadian wasted the chance with a rushed shot that went way wide. Spurs thought they’d been handed the chance to double their lead just before the break when Richarlison went down in the box, but after a lengthy VAR check, the referee waved away the penalty appeals, leaving it 1-0 at break.
The second half belonged to Villarreal in spells. Juan Foyth had a free header that drifted off target, while Pépé, once again the danger man, pressed Spurs into a mistake and almost curled home the equaliser. Spurs had to hold on tight to their lead, they created a few half-chances of their own, but nothing really tested Luiz Júnior after his early howler.
As the match approached its later stages, Villarreal threw everything forward. Pépé had one last chance from a free-kick at the edge of the box, but it summed up his night, always close, but not close enough to do the damage. On loan star from PSG Randal Kolo-Muani made his UCL debut for Spurs, as they dug deep and held their ground , celebrating a hard-earned victory at the full time whistle.
Meanwhile, Tottenham confirmed on its official X handle, the man of match was none other than Lucas Bergvall after this wonderful cross was fumbled into the net by Villareal’s goalkeeper, Luiz Júnior, watch below;
For Villarreal, the result adds to a worrying run, three straight games without a win and still no victory in 15 attempts against English opposition in the Champions League. For Tottenham, it may not have been glamorous as Softfootball earlier suggested that the match was to be an open affair even predicting a 3-2 win for spurs,but it was exactly what they needed: three points, a clean sheet, and a winning start to life back in Europe’s biggest competition.
