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Tottenham Hotspur got their 2020-21 Europa League group stage campaign off to a winning start by defeating LASK at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Spurs were rarely troubled by their Austrian opponents and ran out 3-0 winners, although to tell the truth, they could’ve scored more.
Lucas Moura opened the scoring in the first half following a wonderful pass from debutant Carlos Vinicius, and Tottenham’s lead was quickly doubled when a Gareth Bale cross was turned into the net by the unfortunate Andres Andrade.
Finally, the third goal was added by the in-form Son Heung Min with less than ten minutes remaining.
On that note, here are five talking points from Tottenham’s 3-0 win over LASK.
#1 Vinicius shows Tottenham fans that life without Kane might not be so bad
Tottenham fans have been waiting for a long time for their squad to feature a genuine backup for striker Harry Kane, and judging by the game against LASK, it looks like they might’ve found one. The match saw Brazilian striker Carlos Vinicius make his Spurs debut, with the player having an excellent game.
Sure, he missed a relatively easy chance early in the first half, but once he settled down, his movement and team-play were fabulous. Vinicius marked his debut with two assists, and both of them were impressive.
The first half saw the player pick up Lucas Moura with a pass that Kane himself would’ve been proud of, with his fellow Brazilian finishing off the chance with ease. In the second half, the striker was able to get his head to a ball from Matt Doherty to head into the path of Son Heung Min, who unsurprisingly found the back of the net.
LASK weren’t exactly the toughest opponents for Tottenham, it was still a highly impressive debut for Vinicius, who showed absolutely no nerves whatsoever. It looks like Jose Mourinho may have unearthed quite a player, and that can only be a good thing for Tottenham’s 2020-21 campaign.
#2 Tottenham looked quite vulnerable from set-pieces
If we’re really frank, LASK were relatively poor against Spurs. Despite the statistics showing that they had 11 shots – just two fewer than Tottenham – and had 46% of the possession, in reality, they were easily shrugged aside by Jose Mourinho’s men.
However, despite picking up a clean sheet for the first time in 2020-21, this wasn’t a flawless performance from Tottenham’s defence. Goalkeeper Joe Hart looked comfortable throughout and commanded his penalty area well, but that didn’t stop LASK from looking dangerous from set-pieces throughout the game.
That should be a concern for Mourinho, who has already seen his side concede a lot of cheap goals from set-pieces this season. If a poor side like LASK can look dangerous – even though they never came close to scoring – then it doesn’t bode well for Tottenham's chances against the Premier League's set-piece specialists.
With Spurs taking on Burnley on Monday evening, it’s probably something that Mourinho will want to work on in training as soon as possible. If Tottenham are to win trophies this season, they need to close this hole in their game.
#3 Gareth Bale’s first start back at Tottenham was a quiet one
The game against LASK was always going to be a somewhat memorable occasion, purely because it marked the first start for Gareth Bale during his second stint at Tottenham. Unfortunately for the Welshman, it wasn’t the blockbuster return he might’ve hoped for.
To tell the truth, in such a low-key game, it was always going to be tricky for him to grab the headlines. Bale was relatively quiet throughout his 62 minutes on the pitch, and in truth, Tottenham looked more dangerous once he was withdrawn although that may have had more to do with the introduction of Dele Alli.
Overall, Gareth Bale will surely make a major impact at some point this season – he’s too good not to – but against LASK, it was very clear that he is very rusty right now.
It’s hardly a surprise given he only played a handful of games in 2019-20, but his showing against LASK should probably be a wake-up call of sorts for Tottenham fans expecting the old magic to return right away. It may take a few more games yet.
#4 Dele Alli looked sharp when he came on
The talk of Dele Alli potentially leaving Tottenham has naturally quietened down since the closure of the transfer window, but given the England international has barely been involved in Spurs’ recent games, it would’ve been fair to question his future.
However, the most reliable reports in this regard have always suggested that Dele Alli is willing to stay in North London and fight for his place, and his cameo against LASK suggested there’s some truth in that. Introduced into the fray with around half an hour remaining, Alli made plenty of impact as soon as he came onto the pitch.
Sure, not everything he did came off – he missed a good chance at one point and also suffered from some confusion over a potential offside during another foray forward – but he was still impressive.
Perhaps the most telling point was his workrate. Everyone knows that Jose Mourinho loves his players to give their all and fight to win the ball back should they lose it – and Dele Alli did just that tonight, looking more than happy to defend as well as looking to get involved in attacks.
It’s almost a cliche now to suggest that Dele Alli could play a big role for Tottenham this season if he can find his form again. While against LASK, it may have been an easy game against a weak opponent, his performance on the night is definitely a positive sign that he’s heading in the right direction.
#5 Tottenham may not need to leave third gear to win their Europa League group
The overall feeling from the game against LASK was that Tottenham didn’t really need to break a sweat in order to win. Aside from the odd dangerous set-piece, LASK offered little going forward, and had Spurs been more clinical, they could easily have had six or even seven goals.
That begs the question – will Tottenham really need to leave third gear in order to win their Europa League group? On the evidence of the game against LASK, the answer to that will probably be no. There’s nothing to really suggest that Royal Antwerp or Ludogorets could offer any more resistance than LASK, and that has to be encouraging for Jose Mourinho.
Tottenham now have a strong, deep squad, but with so many games this season, everyone from key men like Harry Kane to fringe players like Jack Clarke are going to have to play a role at some point. That means that having relatively easy games like the one against LASK to play on Thursday nights is a bit of a bonus for Mourinho and his men.
Given that the group stage of the Europa League doesn’t end until mid December, it’s probably not a stretch to say that Tottenham shouldn’t have any trouble in the competition until the early part of 2021.
Essentially, Spurs have been handed a bit of a gift in the form of such a seemingly easy draw. It’s now up to them to use it to full effect by easing through these Thursday night games and saving their best football for the Premier League games on weekends.
