Goals from Harry Kane and Son Heung-min helped Tottenham Hotspur to a 2-1 win at Borussia Dortmund.
The home side took the lead through Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, but two strikes in the second half turned the match on its head and sent Spurs through to the Champions League knockout rounds as group winners.
Below are four talking points from Signal Iduna Park.
1. Tottenham grow into game after falling behind
Tottenham needed to respond following their disappointing performance against Arsenal at the weekend, and that is exactly what they did. It actually took Mauricio Pochettino’s men a while to get going in this game – they were second best in the opening exchanges – but the visitors kept calm after falling behind and took the chances that came their way after the interval.
There has been a great maturity to the north Londoners’ displays in the Champions League this term, with Spurs playing intelligent, streetwise football against sides such as Dortmund and Real Madrid. They managed this game brilliantly in the second half and succeeded in keeping the hosts away from their goal for long periods; in the end, they were good value for their victory.
2. Dortmund lacking in confidence despite positive start
Peter Bosz’s charges came into this match in desperate need of a positive performance. A win for Madrid against APOEL would see them eliminated regardless of the outcome at Signal Iduna Park, but Dortmund nevertheless needed to show their supporters some sort of evidence to suggest 2017/18 can still be a successful campaign.
They started well, with Andriy Yarmolenko looking particularly threatening on the right flank, but the nature of their collapse in the second half was hugely concerning. Not only did they look vulnerable at the back, the Bundesliga outfit also struggled to create chances and seemed to lose confidence as time wore on, with too many players guilty of choosing the easy option in possession.
3. Kane and Aubameyang rediscover scoring touch
For strikers with their remarkable scoring records, Kane and Aubameyang have both experienced goal droughts in the last few weeks. Prior to Tuesday night’s clash, the Tottenham frontman had failed to find the back of the net in his last three outings in all competitions, while his Gabonese counterpart had not struck since October’s defeat by RB Leipzig – which was five matches ago.
Neither frontman had many chances here, but both were able to get their names on the scoresheet. Aubameyang made no mistake after latching onto a tremendous flick from Yarmolenko – although he had previously spurned an excellent opportunity after being played in behind by the Ukrainian winger – while Kane unerringly located the corner following a slightly fortuitous bounce of the ball in the second half.
Aubameyang and Kane are very different centre-forwards, but there are few in the world better than them.
4. Bosz remains under pressure
Dortmund’s hopes of progression to the knockout stage were always likely to end on Tuesday, but a triumph would still have provided a boost to the under-fire Bosz. As it is, the former Ajax head coach remains under pressure as his team’s run without a victory reached five matches. If you discount the DFB-Pokal success against third tier Magdeburg, it is now eight encounters without a win.
The main reason for that unwelcome run is their defensive shakiness; Kane’s goal means BVB have now kept one clean sheet in their last 12 games. With Bosz’s side now eliminated from the Champions League – having recently fallen nine points behind Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich – the Dutchman remains under pressure.
