Sporting Lisbon staged a dramatic late show to stun Tottenham 2-0 in the Champions League.
Late goals from Paulinho and Arthur Gomes saw the Portuguese side maintain their perfect start in Group D as Spurs unravelled to throw away a valuable point on the road.
After a fairly uneventful first half, the game kicked into life with minutes to go before the break. Richarlison thought he had given Spurs the lead when he rounded the keeper and slotted the ball into an empty net, but he had strayed offside.
Minutes later, Marcus Edwards – a former Spurs academy player – produced a moment of brilliance to come closest to breaking the deadlock in the final action of the half. The 23-year-old picked up the ball on the half way line and danced his way through the Tottenham midfield, showcased some tricky feet in front of goal, but his close-range effort was kept out by Hugo Lloris.
Tottenham started the second half much stronger as Antonio Adan was called into action on a couple of occasions early on, while Sporting continued to counter with menace down the other end.
Just as the game looked set to end goalless, Paulinho rose to head home a corner in the 90th minute before Gomes weaved through a dishevelled Spurs backline in injury time to complete a memorable night in Lisbon.
TALKING POINT – WILL SPURS REGRET LETTING EDWARDS GO?
Marcus Edwards was at Tottenham between 2006 and 2019, having loan spells at Norwich and Excelsior before making a permanent switch to Vitoria. He joined Sporting in January and has continued to shine in Portugal.
The 23-year-old relished the opportunity to play his old side and took his chance as he ran the show from start to finish. He was the catalyst of an impressive Sporting attack, and produced the best moment of the game when he beat half of the Spurs team, only to be denied by a scuffy Lloris save.
PLAYER OF THE MATCH – MARCUS EDWARDS (SPORTING)
He was certainly the standout player on the night. Electric going forward, the ball stuck to his feet, as he dazzled his former club and troubled them throughout the game.
He threatened a number of times, most noticeably that run at the end of the first half, which showed how much quality he possesses.
MATCH RATINGS
SPORTING: Adan 7, Inacio 6, Coates 7, Reis 7, Porro 7, Morita 7, Ugarte 6, Santos 6, Trincao 8, Edwards 8, Goncalves 6. Subs: Alexandropoulos 5, Paulinho 8, Arthur Gomes N/A, Ricardo Esgaio N/A
TOTTENHAM: Lloris 5, Romero 6, Dier 6, Davies 5, Emerson 5, Bentancur 6, Hojbjerg 6, Perisic 6, Richarlison 5, Kane 4, Son 4. Subs: Kulusevski 7
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
42’ – RICHARLISON HAS THE BALL IN THE NET… BUT HE’S OFFSIDE. Again! Richarlison pounces on to a through ball and takes it around the keeper to slot home, but he’s strayed offside once more.
45’+2 – WHAT A GOAL THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN! It’s sensational from Marcus Edwards. He nearly beats Lloris after weaving in and out of half the Spurs side, but his close-range shot is a bit scruffy and is just about prevented by the French keeper. Highlight of the game so far.
48’ – EMERSON DENIED! Kane whips in a free kick towards the back post and Emerson gets a foot onto it as he slides in, but Adan beats his effort away.
90’ – GOAL! SPORTING 1-0 TOTTENHAM (PAULINHO): Deadlock broken! Paulinho heads home from a corner.
90’+2 – GOAL! SPORTING 2-0 TOTTENHAM (GOMES) – There’s another! That’s three points wrapped up for Sporting. Gomes picks up the ball on the touchline and drives through Emerson, before slipping the ball under Lloris.
