Eintracht Frankfurt held Tottenham Hotspur to a goalless draw in Germany on Tuesday night as Antonio Conte’s side dropped more points in Group D.
Both sides had chances to snatch victory during a scrappy, but entertaining game, however neither were clinical enough in the final third.
Tottenham were forced to weather a storm of Frankfurt pressure as the hosts pinned Spurs back in their own half in the early stages, but the visitors gradually grew into the game and were presented with a handful of inviting opportunities in front of goal.
It was more of the same in the second half, but neither side were able to break the deadlock.
The best chance of the game fell to Frankfurt’s Ansgar Knauff minutes after the break. Djibril Sow lifted the ball over the Tottenham defence and Knauff met the ball on the volley, but Hugo Lloris was alert to beat it away.
Despite end-to-end action as the teams grew weary, both sides stood firm to hold onto a point apiece.
TALKING POINT – FRUSTRATING NIGHT FOR SPURS
Conte will take a point on the road but he and his players know they’re still not firing on all cylinders like they should be. It was an improved performance from the weekend’s North London Derby disaster, and the point they’ve earned could prove to be a valuable one come the end of the group stages, but it quite easily could been all three with more quality in the final third.
If the worst does come to the worst and Spurs find themselves playing Europa League football this season, they’ll look back on tonight and see it as a missed opportunity. On a more positive note, they were more organised at the back, especially towards the end when legs started growing tired. They managed to avoid a repeat of what happened in Lisbon when they conceded a couple of late goals and at least banked a point to keep them second in the group.
PLAYER OF THE MATCH – ERIC DIER (TOTTENHAM)
The England defender put in a flawless performance at the back as he helped his side to a well-deserved clean sheet. Spurs’ troubles came in front of goal on the night, but they could have come at the back too if it wasn’t for Dier anchoring an organised Tottenham back line.
The England international was orchestrating a lot of Spurs’ attacking play too in the first half; he made 50 passes in the first half and completed five long balls as he tried to get Tottenham ticking.
MATCH RATINGS
FRANKFURT: Trapp 7, Tuta 6, Hasebe 7, Ndicka 7, Jakic 6, Rode 7, Sow 7, Knauff 7, Lindstrom 5, Kamada 6, Muani 6
Subs: Pellegrini 6, Ebimbe N/A, Borre 5
TOTTENHAM: Lloris 7, Romero 6, Dier 8, Lenglet 6, Emerson 6, Hojbjerg 7, Bentancur 5, Perisic 6, Richarlison 5, Kane 5, Son 6
Subs: Davies 5, Sessengnon 6, Gil 6.
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
18’ – CHANCE FRANKFURT! That’s a great move from the Germans. Spurs are opened up on the edge of their own box as Rode is found on the right but his shot is deflected behind for a corner.
24’ – TOTTENHAM CHANCE! Richarlison slips in Son to the right of the goal who fizzes a cross, maybe too hard, across the six-yard box towards Kane in the middle who can’t convert.
40’ – CHANCE FOR SON! Son tries to curl an effort beyond Kevin Trapp from the edge of the box but puts it wide! You would expect the net to bulge there!
49’ – HUGE CHANCE FRANKFURT! That came out of nowhere! Sow lifts a beautiful ball over the top of the Spurs defence and Knauff is all alone in the Tottenham box, but fluffs his chance as he can’t get a good connection on the ball and Lloris beats it away. He was onside as well.
60’- SPURS ARE LUCKY NOT TO BE BEHIND! They fail to clear the ball just outside their own box and Rode capitalises, finds Lindstrom on the edge of the box, who fires over the bar.
