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In what turned out to be a straightforward game, Tottenham Hotspur defeated Ludogorets 4-0 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in a Europa League game tonight.
The result puts Tottenham on the verge of qualification for the knockout stages, and with a win over LASK next week, their spot will be secured.
Two goals from Carlos Vinicius opened Tottenham's scoring in the first half, as Ludogorets offered very little resistance to wave after wave of attacks. The second half saw a wonder goal from Harry Winks, as he lobbed the goalkeeper from 53 yards, and finally, a nicely taken strike from Lucas Moura sealed the result.
Here are five talking points from Tottenham’s easy win over Ludogorets.
#1 Tottenham won’t have an easier game this season
Tottenham might’ve brushed aside Ludogorets a couple of weeks ago and also defeated LASK comfortably prior to that. Still, Jose Mourinho’s side are unlikely to find an easier game than this one all season. Even by Europa League group stage standards, this was a complete walkover.
Tottenham came out with plenty of attacking intent from the off here, with the likes of Dele Alli and Carlos Vinicius clearly looking to shine. And they were faced with the perfect opponents, as Ludogorets simply offered nothing in return.
The Bulgarian side basically couldn’t get out of their own half for the entire match and ended the game with 39% possession and not a single shot on goal. Even when they forced a corner late in the second half, the ball was fired comfortably into the arms of substitute keeper Alfie Whiteman.
Obviously, not every game can be this simple, even for a side as good as Tottenham. But this was the perfect warm-up for Sunday’s big Premier League clash with Chelsea.
Mourinho was able to give not only his fringe players but some young prospects a run-out, nobody appeared to pick up an injury, and the result was in the bag from the moment Vinicius opened the scoring.
After some dodgy European showings from Spurs this season, this one was faultless, and Mourinho will surely be pleased.
#2 Ndombele was absolutely fantastic in the first half
While the likes of Carlos Vinicius, Dele Alli, and Harry Winks worked hard to prove their worth in tonight’s game, it was one of Jose Mourinho’s usual starters – Tanguy Ndombele – who shone the brightest overall.
The first half saw the Frenchman have an absolute stormer from a slightly deeper-lying role in midfield. Ludogorets simply couldn’t handle him in the slightest, and he ended the half with the most touches (63), the most passes completed in the Ludogorets half (41), and also won the most tackles, too.
Obviously, his most impressive moment was the Jack Grealish-esque run that eventually led to Vinicius’ second goal. But overall, his performance was fantastic.
And given that he did play from a slightly more deep-lying role, could it be that Mourinho will now play him ahead of Moussa Sissoko alongside Giovani Lo Celso and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in Sunday’s clash with Chelsea? It’s certainly an intriguing prospect.
Either way, right now, there aren’t many Tottenham players on as good form as the Frenchman, and given his struggles last season, it’s brilliant to see.
#3 Is Dele Alli now firmly back in the Tottenham fold?
Ever since the start of the 2020-21 campaign, questions have been asked over the Tottenham future of Dele Alli. Once considered Tottenham’s most valuable player, the England international has struggled in the few appearances he’s made thus far and has often been left out of the matchday squad by Jose Mourinho.
When Tottenham’s team was announced tonight, it came as a surprise to see Dele in the starting XI. But in the end, he repaid Mourinho’s faith with a tremendous performance.
Sure, the opposition wasn’t up to a high standard at all, but Dele looked like he had his swagger back tonight. Not all of the tricks and flicks he tried came off, but he worked extremely hard, pressed the opposition from the off, and had a hand in three of Tottenham’s four goals.
Judging by tonight’s game, it looks like rather than being on his way out of North London, Dele is back in the Tottenham fold. And if that’s truly the case, then it’s a massive bonus for Spurs. When he’s at his best, Alli is still one of the best players in the Premier League.
And not only that, but he adds even more quality to what is now a very deep Tottenham squad.
#4 Winks scores a worldie – even if he didn’t mean it!
It quickly became clear that tonight’s game would be a stroll in the park for Tottenham, and it took them just 16 minutes to open the scoring. But one man who nobody would’ve expected to see on the scoresheet was Harry Winks.
The England midfielder is renowned for his smart passing – he completed 105 of his attempted 116 tonight, far more than any other player on the pitch. But goalscoring isn’t exactly his forte. In fact, the last time he found the net for Tottenham was in a match with Fulham in January 2019.
But tonight, that changed, and in dramatic fashion. Receiving the ball from a throw-in on the left side of the pitch, Winks hit a 53-yard lob that somehow looped over Ludogorets keeper Plamen Iliev and into the net.
It was a ridiculous goal, one that was reminiscent of David Beckham’s famous lob for Manchester United back in 1996. Sadly, in a post-game interview, Winks admitted that he hadn’t meant to shoot – the lob was actually a pass to Gareth Bale gone awry. But it still provided Tottenham fans with a massively memorable moment.
Winks will now undoubtedly be hoping his next Spurs goal comes around before another 22 months is up!
#5 Did Jose Mourinho give any clues into his line-up for the Chelsea game on Sunday?
Given that Tottenham have a huge London derby against Chelsea to look forward to on Sunday – with the winners likely topping the Premier League table – Jose Mourinho was never going to play his full-strength XI in tonight’s game. And indeed, the likes of Harry Kane, Son Heung-min, and Eric Dier stayed firmly on the bench.
But with some question marks over Tottenham’s starting XI on Sunday, did Mourinho give any clues tonight? It’s possible.
Firstly, given that Matt Doherty played tonight after recovering from a bout of COVID-19, it’s likely that Serge Aurier will be preferred in the right-back spot for the Chelsea game. The center of Tottenham’s defense, though, is a bigger question mark.
Mourinho has used a partnership of Dier and Toby Alderweireld, but with the Belgian on the shelf with a groin injury, who is likely to partner Dier on Sunday? Judging by tonight’s game, the most logical option could be Japhet Tanganga.
The youngster returned from an injury to play the full 90 minutes tonight and was largely impressive against weak opposition. With Mourinho seemingly not fully trusting Davinson Sanchez and Joe Rodon still wildly inexperienced, Tanganga could provide the injection of pace that Spurs need alongside Dier.
And in midfield, did Tanguy Ndombele’s appearance tonight mean that Giovani Lo Celso will be preferred for Sunday’s match? Or was his slightly deeper role a suggestion that he could pair with Lo Celso alongside Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg against Chelsea? We’ll find out come the weekend.
Essentially, tonight’s biggest lesson was that Tottenham now have a hugely deep squad with options in every position. And that can only bode well for Mourinho’s hopes of delivering the club’s first trophy since 2008.
