Tottenham beat Young Boys 4-0 making it to Champions’ League group stages
It’s finally official; Tottenham Hotspurs would be taking part in the champions’ league for the very first time. Harry Redknapp’s team booked their place in the group stages of Europe’s elite competition by beating Young Boys 4-0 in the return leg of their Champions’ league playoff, although Tottenham had been trailing 3-2 from the first leg.
England striker Peter Crouch smashed in an impressive Hat trick to help his side make history. The home side were level early, when Crouch used every inch of his 6 foot 7 frame to head home a cross from Gareth Bale. There was some controversy surrounding the 2nd goal as Defoe seemed to have used his arm to control the ball before firing it in. The goal, however, stood and Spurs were 2-0 ahead on the night and 4-2 on aggregate. Crouch was once again on the end of a cross when he made it 3-0, and scored from a Penalty to make it a resounding 4-0 win.
Tottenham now find themselves in an unknown territory. The London side have never been part of Champions’ league and would now eagerly be awaiting the final draws for group stages. Spurs did play in the era of European cup back in 1962, but in the champions’ league era, they have never managed to be here. They finished 4th in the Premier League last season, beating 3 other teams in contention for the all important spot. Spurs managed to surpass, Liverpool, Aston Villa and Manchester City. However, their place in the Champions’ league proper was still not confirmed. Tottenham lost the first leg of the play off tie against Young Boys 3-2. After the defeat, the Team manager had said that it was a good defeat if there actually is anything like that as his team was trailing 3-0 and European dreams looked to be going out of the window, but they fought back to get to 3-2 and away from home that was a fantastic result. He had assured the fans that his team would do the job at home, and they sure did it with a remarkable score line.
After the win, Redknapp said that he had told his team to be on the offensive right from the start. He said that Young Boys obviously didn’t have any experience on the English grounds so they had to be caught by surprise. He added that home fans were literally the 12th player for his team. Tottenham did get at their opposition right from the first whistle, and never let them settle. Crouch was the man who scored the winning goal last season against Manchester City that assured 4th spot for his team. He was once again at the forefront of attack when Bale sent in a threatening cross. The former Liverpool man rose higher than the rest and directed it goal-wards.
Despite the utter domination, there was the element of luck involved as well. Defoe, scheduled to have surgery in a few days, latched onto a pass from Bale and looked to have used his hand to control the ball. He did use the left foot to slot it in, and paused with guilt to look around. The referee behind the goal, however, didn’t see it and the goal stood. The game looked to be in the bag right then. As the visitors pushed forward in search of goals, Crouch caught a good ball on the break and made it 3. Gareth Bale was in the thick of things; after 2 assists he was fouled in the area. Crouch calmly slotted in the resulting spot kick and completed his Hat Trick.
It would be interesting to see who Spurs find themselves with in the group stages. Redknapp added that he would make sure that Champions’ league is not a distraction from domestic competition. He added that playing in Europe would help him attract big names to the club in next transfer window.
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