City dispatched in first Champions League match at new stadium

Heung-Min Son’s second-half strike ensured our first-ever Champions League tie at the new stadium ended in a magnificent victory against Manchester City in our quarter-final, first leg on Tuesday.

On a night of real tension, we produced a superb performance amid a constant cacophony of noise to edge the game 1-0 in what was our first Champions League fixture in N17 for eight years and we take the slender advantage north to Manchester for the second leg next Wednesday (17 April).

Sergio Aguero had seen a first-half penalty well saved by Hugo Lloris but our South Korean striker, who scored the stadium’s first-ever goal just six days earlier, hit arguably a more important one on this occasion, firing home in the 78th minute and it was no more than we deserved following an excellent all-round display.

The football was nothing if not cagey in the opening stages despite a sizzling atmosphere which craved high-intensity football, the first shot in anger coming from the boot of Dele on eight minutes, who met Moussa Sissoko’s cross at the edge of the area but couldn’t keep his volley down.

Then came a moment of high drama four minutes later. Raheem Sterling’s shot deflected off Danny Rose for what seemed a corner, until it was announced that VAR was checking for a penalty for handball from our England defender as he slid in to block. After a lengthy delay, the decision went in City’s favour and referee Bjorn Kuipers pointed to the spot. Aguero stepped up and hit a firm spot-kick but Lloris guessed correctly and dived to his left, pushing the shot away and the danger was cleared by Jan Vertonghen. That certainly sparked the game into life and it got a bit tetchy at times, but we were up for the fight and produced some great football. It almost brought an opener on 24 minutes when Dele was fouled by Nicolas Otamendi by the goal-line down our left but the referee waved play on and the ball fell to Harry Kane inside the area, his right-foot curler pushed away by Ederson.

Defensively we were sound in the first period, Kieran Trippier more than holding his own against the in-form Sterling, while we limited City to a couple of wayward Aguero strikes. The final opening of the half saw Rose hit a free-kick from the right angle of the area but it was well gathered low down by Ederson.

The second half opened with a flurry of chances - Sterling tested Lloris from inside the area, Son curled one just wide of Ederson’s far post and then forced the keeper into a save with a low drive following a swift counter-attack. But we then suffered a blow when Kane limped off straight own the tunnel following a tackle by Fabian Delph right in front of the dugouts. He was replaced by Lucas Moura. It was a moment that temporarily knocked us a little and the visitors started to look dangerous, although they didn’t force Lloris into any saves of any real significance and instead, it was us who made the breakthrough with 12 minutes remaining. Christian Eriksen played a delightful clip into Son’s path in the right channel of the area and, although he didn’t control the ball initially, he showed speed of thought to stop the ball on the byline, cut back inside Delph and drill low under Ederson to send the stadium into sheer delirium. We even had a double celebration as we waited for VAR to confirm the goal – the ground erupting again when the referee confirmed the decision in our favour!

City brought some key players on in the closing minutes in the shape of Gabriel Jesus, Kevin De Bruyne and Leroy Sane but we defended stoutly and saw out the final stages to record a fine result. Still another game to go, but it’s most definitely all to play for.

Key moment

It was such a tense and thrilling contest which always looked like one moment might decide it and so it proved. Son has a knack of delivering when it matters and he duly did so again, overcoming a poor first touch to gather the ball and find the back of the net. Lloris' penalty save in the first half was equally important as it denied Pep Guardiola's men an away goal in the tie.

Mauricio's view

Manager Mauricio Pochettino said: "It’s only the first leg but I am happy with our performance with a good approach from the beginning.

"We were so aggressive and we were very clever in the way that we played. There is a lot of work to do now - we need to recover and try to prepare for Saturday (against Huddersfield in the Premier League)."

Midfielder Moussa Sissoko added: "Of course, we are very happy about the performance of today. City are one of the best teams in the world but we were playing at home in front of our fans with this amazing stadium so we knew we could do it.

"I think our desire (made the difference). We worked as a team from the beginning to the end and Hugo kept us in the game with his big save at the beginning."

Reaction on Spurs TV

Match data

Goal: Spurs – Son 78.

Yellow cards: Spurs – Rose; City – Laporte, Mahrez.

Referee: Bjorn Kuipers (Netherlands).

Venue: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Weather: Partly cloudy, moderate breeze, five degrees.

Attendance: 60,044.