(Football news) Goals by Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Clement Lenglet helped Tottenham Hotspur secure a 2-1 victory over Marseille at the Stade Velodrome in the Champions League. The result meant that Spurs have now progressed to the round of 16. Antonio Conte made four changes with Eric Dier, Ivan Perisic, Rodrigo Bentancur and Lucas Moura replacing the likes of Davinson Sanchez, Emerson Royal, Oliver Skipp and Yves Bissouma. As for Marseille, the French side named three former Arsenal players in their starting lineup with Matteo Guendouzi, Nelson Tavares and Alexis Sanchez featuring in the team.

Tottenham had a lacklustre first half, failing to get a single touch in Marseille’s box while the hosts had an early setback with Eric Bailly being forced off injured. Tottenham had an injury problem of their own as Son was forced off after a heavy knock to his cheekbone and it was later revealed that the South Korean had a swollen eye and a full assessment is due the following day. Conte will be concerned with the rising injury problems in his team, especially considering that Dejan Kulusevski and Richarlison are already unavailable. 

Things got even worse for Tottenham when Marseille found the breakthrough in the first half stoppage time, taking a quick corner which was capitalised on by Mbemba whose free header went into the back of the net. Spurs didn’t even look close to scoring in the first half with Harry Kane’s attempt, which was saved by Pau Lopez, being their only opportunity. The visitors had completed just six passes in Marseille’s final third and recognizing the need for a tactical change, Conte replaced Ryan Sessegnon with Emerson Royal at half-time.

The gamble worked and Spurs scored the equaliser in the 54th minute with Ivan Perisic’s freekick finding Lenglet who headed home. Despite momentum on their side, Tottenham then went on to miss several opportunities and it looked like the game would be heading to a draw. However, Harry Kane provided the assist to Hojbjerg, whose emphatic finish silenced the Stade Velodrome crowd. It was the third time in Tottenham’s Champions League history that the team finished on top of their group, the other two being in the 2010/11 and 2017/18. 

Speaking after the match, Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris said “We expected a tough game. We know this is a difficult place to deal with. We showed great personalities. Clement [Lenglet] scored a very important goal in France, in front of the French people. The second goal from Pierre [Hojbjerg] confirmed things for the group. We didn't play well during the first half. Maybe we didn't know what would happen if we attacked. It wasn't good for us to play this type of first half. We speak in the locker room – we start the second half with much more personality and aggressiveness. We played a very good second half. It was a tough night and a great battle."

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