TOTTENHAM FAILED TO get off to a winning start in the Champions League as last season’s finalists let a 2-0 lead slip to draw 2-2 with Olympiakos in Greece on Wednesday.
Despite a slow start, two goals in four minutes from Harry Kane and Lucas Moura put Spurs on course for vital win in group B.
Olympiakos fought back and are now unbeaten in their last 18 games in all competitions stretching back to February. They were well worthy of at least a point as Daniel Podence and Mathieu Valbuena struck either side of half-time.
A point away in front of a passionate crowd in Piraeus is not a disastrous start for Mauricio Pochettino’s men, who took just one point from their opening three group games last season before an improbable run to the final.
There will be concern that Spurs have won just two of their opening six games this season and face the might of Bayern Munich next in the Champions League.
Olympiakos started brightly. Podence forced Hugo Lloris into the first save of the game inside 10 minutes.
The hosts came even closer moments later when Miguel Angel Guerrero struck the inside of the post and Guilherme’s follow-up effort bounced over the bar.
Pochettino left out Son Heung-min from the starting lineup even though the South Korean scored twice in a 4-0 win over Crystal Palace on Saturday, which the Argentine recognised was by a distance his side’s best performance of the season so far.
The visitors’ missed Son’s energy and goal threat early on, but were gifted the lead when Kane was needlessly taken out by Yassine Meriah.
Kane saw a rare penalty saved on international duty last week, but the England captain made no mistake from the spot for his 15th goal in 20 Champions League appearances.
Four minutes later the points seemed destined to head back to London when Lucas collected Ben Davies’s pass and fired home from outside the box to double Tottenham’s advantage.
Pochettino’s men, who blew a 2-0 lead away to Arsenal last month, allowed Olympiakos a lifeline just before the break.
Podence played a lovely one-two with Valbuena, before giving Lloris no chance with a smart finish in the bottom corner.
Tottenham thought they had restored their two-goal lead when Dele Alli found the net early in the second-half, but the England midfielder was rightly flagged offside.
Instead, Olympiakos went down the other end and levelled. Former veteran former French international Valbuena was clipped by Jan Vertonghen and dispatched the resulting penalty to give the Greeks belief that a big upset was on.
After the 34-year-old Valbuena was replaced for fresher legs, it was the English side that looked the likelier winners in the final half hour.
Jose Sa made a great save to deny Alli his first goal since January and then also stood up to Erik Lamela’s near post blast with Kane left begging for a pass that could have left him with a tap in.
Former Ireland performance analyst and current coaching wizard of OZ Eoin Toolan joins Murray Kinsella and Gavan Casey to predict Ireland’s World Cup, break down every pool, and call the overall winners.
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Something not right with them this year. There’s almost too many players. No idea.
@Peter Brophy: I think the problem is that Leo is rotating his players too much. He needs a consistent core group of players so that when the internationals come back into the side, it won’t be such a jump. Having said that, it’s worrying that Leinster haven’t had a single good performance this season and they’re only a game away from their first Championship Cup fixture.
A lot of credit must go to how Edinburgh approached the match and made things difficult for Leinster. Reduced to some aimless kicking or loose running, it was up to Leinster to think their way out of it. No trophies won in September so move on to the next one and take the 4 points and them taking nothing.
This team will get much better. They just need to reintegrate all the big names. It was like their first day at school last night…. no need to panic
From a munster and Ireland fan sexton is shitte hot …munster Leinster this year
He brushed over the lineout issue.
A couple of missed calls? How can there possible be a missed call? The pack huddle, make a call and then the prop tells this call to the hooker. Unless either the prop or the hooker doesn’t speak or understand English someone please tell me how they could get the call wrong.
“3 or 4 international class players in every position”
@Paul O’Connor: And yet they look like AIL players. And you can ask why. And the answe is they all think they are the dogs bollo&, but it is high time they earned their wages. They are overpaid, overhyped, muck