There is undoubted talent in the Real side, even without Gareth Bale, Keylor Navas, Dani Carvajal and Mateo Kovacic.  While Benzema missed some glorious chances last time out against Spurs, it is not beyond the realms of possibility that he won't have as bad a game again, while Ronaldo is a constant threat, with his powerful running and strength at set-pieces - either taking them or getting on the end of them.   With midfielders like Kroos and Modric to force the team forward and create chances, the Spurs defence will once more need to be on their toes.  A lapse liek the one at Old Trafford on Saturday will surely be punished again.

For Spurs, much will rely on the return of Harry Kane to the side, but with Dele Alli available for the first time in the Champions League this season, a different proposition for the Real Madrid might be posed.  But it also will be another test for him, as Real (and Ramos in particular) will be waiting to bait him and try to get him sent off, especially after seeing Saturday's match.  The need for calm heads will be important, as eleven players will give us a much better chance of coming out of the match with something.

If Kane doesn't play, it will not be the end of the world and if playing sets him back, it is not worth the risk, as there are other winnable games in this group still to play and we need Harry for the long haul.  Son can play as an out and out forward and if Poch is to go two up top again, perhaps Son and Llorente might be able to link up well, with Heung-Min providing the legs that Fernando lacks.  With midfield support, the forwards could pose more problems for the Real Madrid defence than they experienced at home. 

Losing to Girona was not the ideal preparation for Real, but then Spurs will also be looking to bounce back with a performance after losing at the weekend too.  Both sides know that a draw will suit them in terms of progressing, but the need to secure top spot in the Group will ensure that there is something to play for.  However, the tension in the match might see the teams share the points.
 

TV
BT Sport - (live coverage)

For coverage in all parts of the world, check here and here.

Radio :  
BBC LONDON 94.9FM (London area only), Digital Radio (London area only) &  Sky Channel 0152  (live coverage)
Commentary may be found on
>   BBC Radio Five Live (live coverage)  606/939 MW
>  TalkSport (DAB or 2nd89 MW)
>  Absolute Radio  (1215 AM/MW)

If available on BBC radio, it can supposedly be heard in these countries on these stations ...
Australia (Melbourne) SEN  -  116 AM  Live Transmissions: TWI, Saturday. 12.45 & 15.00 matches
Australia (Sydney)  Radio 2  -  1611AM  Live Transmission: TWI, Saturday, 12.45 Match
Singapore Media Corp Radio  -  93.8 FM  Live Transmission: TWI, Saturday, 15.00 Match
South Africa  SABC (Radio 2000)  Live Transmission: TWI, Saturday, 15.00 Match
Uganda  Radio 1 (English) 90.0 FM, Radio 2 (Lugandan) 87.9 FM  Live Transmission: TWI, Saturday, 15.00 Match
North America (USA, Canada, Mexico, Caribbean)  Sirius Satellite Radio  Live transmission: Saturday - 12.45, 15.00 (TWI) & 17.15 (BBC) Wednesday - 14.00 & 16.05 (BBC) Mon, Tue, Wed - Various times (BBC)

Internet :
www.spurs.co.uk   Live webcast  - subscribers only
BBC London - http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/content/articles/2005/2nd/12/live_commentaries_feature.shtml click on link to "Listen to Tottenham Hotspur live commentary" on top right hand menu.

  2  Kieran TRIPPIER
29  Harry WINKS  (19  Mousa DEMBELE  66     )
15  Eric DIER
23  Christian ERIKSEN
33  Ben DAVIES

20  DELE Alli

10  Harry KANE  (18  Fernando LLORENTE  79)

Unused subs: 
13  Michel VORM
24  Serge AURIER
  3  Danny ROSE
  7  Heung-Min SON
 

19  Achraf HAKIMI
  6  NACHO
  4  Sergio RAMOS  (c)     
12  MARCELO

14  CASEMIRO
10  Luka MODRIC  (15  Theo HERNADEZ  81)
  8  Toni KROOS
22  ISCO  (21  Borja MAYORAL 73)

  7  Cristiano RONALDO
  9  Karim BENZEMA  (20  Marco ASENSIO  73)

Unused subs: 
35  Ramos WADE
  3  Jesus VALLEJO
17  Lucas VAZQUEZ
24  Dani CEBALLOS

 

Where do you start on such a wonderful night of football for Tottenham fans ?  Everyone was a star in the Spurs team as they dominated the side who retained the  Champions League and made them look more than ordinary with a session of possession towards the end where the ole's rang around Wembley as Spurs fans rocked the stadium to cheer on their players long after the final whistle.  The 3-1 scoreboard must have been one of the most photographed things on this special night, which is one of the most significant in the club's history.

Yes, it's only a group match, but the impact of the win will be significant to the club way beyond this game or campaign.  With some players out, this team was not the best that Pochettino might have picked, but it was ideally crafted to beat Real Madrid.  They were not just contained, but they were ripped apart, as Spurs played with movement and tempo that was starkly missing from the Spanish side's play.

The big crowd were up for it before the teams came out and the noise was incredible all night, as the Lane finally came to Wembley to make it one of the very top Glory, Glory Nights.  Real kicked off the match and had the first effort on goal, which was a tame 25 yarder from Isco that Hugo saved, but without having to stretch himself.  Sergio Ramos, a player whose lack of intelligence makes him look a worse player than he could possibly be, rose to meet a corner from Isco, but put his free header wide.

For the first time in the match, Spurs broke down a Madrid move and hit on the break, with Trippier having lots of space in front of Marcelo, a good player going forward, but defensively a liability.  His cross in was too close to the keeper who grabbed it, then Eriksen just had a pass through to Kane nudged away by Nacho and then the opposite link-up was just too far ahead of Christian to gather it in.  Then, in the 11th minute, Kane had his first chance when Dier picked the ball off the physically weak Casemiro, knocked it short to Eriksen and his pass through was again stopped by Nacho, but the ball was pushed out toward the right of the D and Ramos, instead of thinking of going for the ball, tried to block off Kane by backing into him.  He hadn't budgeted for Harry's strength and the Spanish side's captain bounced off leaving Kane to try a little chip over Casilla, but he was too tall to be beaten that way. plucking the ball out of the air.  A better chance came along two minutes later, when Kane put the ball out wide to Trippier and he took it on the volley firs time and the ball travelled quickly across the six yard box with no white shirt there to convert it.  

When Real got forward they found the back three/five there to stop the ball getting through either from a central position or wide ones.  Marcelo was not as good when a neat passing move put Winks into the box and the left back's tackle was ineffectual, leaving Harry to pop up a cross, but again, Casilla's height allowed him to take it easily.  Isco was busy at the other end and tried to find Benzema after some fancy footwork in the area, but the ball was picked off again, with Tottenham looking forward and when Toby launched a raid, a through ball to him was just too long and as he tried to reach it, he went off the pitch grabbing the back of his thigh.  After some treatment, it was decided he couldn't carry on, so Moussa Sissoko entered the pitch, with Dier dropping back into the back three. 

Quickly re-arranging the line-up, a quick throw-in came through to Winks in lots of space 35 yards from goal.  He picked out a sublime pass to Trippier on the right side of the box and he put in another trademark first time volleyed cross.  The ball went all the way along the ground, as Dele ran in with expert timing to  get there ahead of Nacho and poke the ball past the keeper, who had been taken out by the cross, to give Tottenham a deserved lead in the 27th minute.  The Spurs fans went wild as Real hadn't really had a decent chance up until then.

Real tried to respond and Casemiro, who had a bit of a nightmare game, managed to trick his way into the Tottenham box and fire in a low shot that was just snaking in on goal, but Lloris got down well and got a good hand to it, popping the ball up into the air, where Ben Davies tidied up by conceding a corner.  Then Ronaldo brought out his step-overs and foot-waggling, but while he lost Sanchez, Trippier was concentrating on the ball and forced a shot, that Hugo pushed wide, even though it might not have gone it - he was taking no chances.  After the corner had been cleared, Madrid built again and Hakimi pulled the ball back for Ronaldo to shoot - not that he needs an invitation - but it was straight at Lloris. Spurs had been defending for a few minutes, but breaking out form defence, they made a chance when a one-two between Kane and Dele ended with Dele's lift over the defence being volleyed at Casillas.

A moment of worry came for Tottenham when Isco picked out Ramos with a free-kick, but the central defender put it wide, with a corner being given.  The Turkish officials seemed to be being very generous to Real, with corners that didn't look like corners being awarded and not giving offsides which looked like offside !!  But Tottenham kept playing their game and that was enough to keep Real occupied.   Kieran got between Marcelo and Isco easily on the right side of the area and with a chance to shoot, pulled it back toward the D for Sissoko, who played a brilliant loo-away pass to his left for Kane, who fired in a shot that Ramos blocked and the ball flew up onto his hand.  Moussa didn't really mean it, as he completely mis-kicked the shot, but it nearly confused the Real defence.  They were better going forward and Hakimi pulled a low ball back to Benzema on the edge of the box, but his low effort was save by Hugo, low at his left hand post. 

Spurs turned around at half-time a goal to the good, but more importantly, they had posed more problems than they had to solve,  so Real had it all to do.  There had been so mush pressure on the visiting players that there passing was ragged and they turned over possession too easily.  On top of a cracking first half of action, the half-time guest was Rafael van der Vaart, who got a rousing ovation from the Spurs fans.  I couldn't understand most of what he said, but I could make out that the first thing he learned when he came to England about Spurs was that you mustn't lose to Arsenal !

Spurs started the second half and Harry Kane got past Ramos on the right, looking not cross low for Eriksen, but Nacho got a foot in to hook it away.  Some loose passing from both sides brought an untidy passage of play, with that ending with a free-kick to Real that was played in, but Lloris came over  a Real player to claim it and landed heavily, needing a fair bit of treatment and prompting Vorm to get warmed up on the touchline.  He was fit enough to carry on and was soon in action to deflect Marcelo's low cross away and Dier tidied up, but Hugo was limping around his box when the ball was cleared.

In the 56th minute, Eric Dier linked with his great mate Dele Alli by playing him in 30 yards out with a straight ball form the centre circle.  Face by Ramos and Casemiro, with Kane peeling off to drag Nacho with him, the Spurs midfielder took the ball on, saw Casemiro commit himself to a lunging tackle in front of him, so shimmed to his right.  Before Casemiro could get up again and with Ramos standing five yards off him, he lined up a shot that the keeper might have saved had not the Real captain not cowardly turned his back on the shot that flew off his thigh, sending Casilla the wrong way and rippling the net to make it 2-0.  Cue some nuts celebrations, as the Spurs crowd roared their approval.  And he only cost 5 mill !!

It was hard to believe what we were seeing, with the much derided Sissoko and the 21 year old Winks running the midfield, with Tottenham looking dangerous every time they broke away.  Winks failed to get the ball far enough away with one clearance and it dropped for Toni Kroos, who had been strangely anonymous, to fire at goal, with Dier's deflection on it crucial to take it off target.  When the corner came in, Ramos' pressure on dele saw the Spurs man nod the ball down towards his own goal and Trippier was very calm to let the ball run across him before clearing off the line.  It was blocked, played back in by Nacho.  The ball bounce din the six yard box, with Ronaldo, with his back to goal and trying to turn the ball 270 degrees with his right foot to get  a shot on target and Ramos coming onto the ball both going for it.  Ramos got there first and he had a straight run on it, but his shot crashed against Ronaldo and Sissoko cleared upfield.

Tottenham were killing Real on the break and when another move was frustrated, Dele ran the ball out into the centre circle in his own half, played it to Kane on the right, who, with one uqick look up played a sumptuous pass straight into the run of Christian Eriksen on his left, who had to stretch to get a  first touch with his left foot before dispatching past Casilla from the edge of the box with the sme foot.  As he scored, the defence had been left trailing in the wake of three quick passes, with Modric being the last man behind Eriksen when he scored to make it 3-0 and cue celebrations not seen among a Spurs crowd for a long, long time.  At this point we were all in dreamland.

With 25 minutes still to play, the thoughts were that we could score more than of Real coming back into it.  Spurs brought on Mousa Dembele for Winks, who had given everything and this would both add some more strength in midfield, but also allow Spurs to use the Belgian's passing ability to open up the wilting Real defence.  Madrid tried to get back into the match, as Ronaldo unleashed a shot from 25 yards, which Lloris was behind all the way.  He makes no apology for his selfishness even when other players are in a better position and it rang bells with another Madrid superstar I was reading a book about - Alfredo di Stefano.  I would not put the Portuguese on the same level as di Stefano, but they both had the arrogance to take the game on, while not always appreciating the the players in the side. 

Isco had a shot deflected into Lloris' hands, before Eriksen shot wide form 25 yards after good work by Sissoko, then Dele could have wrapped up a memorable hat-trick when Kane put the ball into Trippier's path on the right and his first time cross found Dele unmarked on the six yard line, but he glanced his header off target, when a more firm contact could have sent it past Casilla.  It was Kane's last action before Pochettino took him off and brought on Fernando Llorente.  Real used their three subs, with Isco, Modric and Benzema making way for Hernandez, Mayoral and Asensio.  It showed that the bench for the Spanish club was not as strong as you might expect, but they had been hit with injuries.

Real did grab a goal back in the 79th minute, as Dier headed a cross away.  Marcelo kept it alive by volleying back across goal fro a tight angle on the left, but Modric flew in trying to head it and it hit his hand.  The ball fell for Mayoral to lay it back a yard for Ronaldo to fire in from close range.  It began a little rally by Madrid and Lloris had to be strong on his one leg to get down to save from Casemiro and then hold a drive from left of centre by Ronaldo, but in the last minute of normal time, Eriksen played Llorente away on the right side of the penalty post and he tried to slot it past Casilla, when a dink might have been a finish to end the match, but the keeper got to it and the final say instead went to Marcelo.  After Dembele had got a booking for following through on Ramos and the Real captain got a yellow card for dissent (how unusual for him to pick up a caution !), a cleared corner dropped outside the box to Marcelo, who hit it firs time but it curved away from goal and was way too high as well.  For a player who had been rumbled by the ref for his diving antics, it was a poor effort.

When the referee blew for the end of the game, the roar was triumphant, but that had been the tone of the side all night.  First defeat for Real in a group game in five years, biggest margin of defeat in nine years, first time we have beaten them in European competition ... the stats kept coming.  But the one thing that I felt was pride in the team. The side performed to a level that was way above what anyone might have expected from them and they tore Real apart.  Not many teams have done that over the years and while the naysayers came out to say this is a poor Real team, two weeks ago they weren't a bad side when they held us to a draw. 

The atmosphere was great and that is what he need to turn Wembley into a home away from home.  Results like this will help, so the next game against Palace is as important and this and the ones that went before.  It was a bounce back after the defeat at Old Trafford and we must go again, as the modern phrase has it.

But for now, just bask in the glory glory of the night. 

Pete Stachio

Whatever excuses Real and their supposed Galacticos come up with, the plain fact is that 3-1 says it all.  They were out-played, out-thought and out-fought.  Losing Alderweireld early on was covered for and everyone put in a good shift.

While Dele scored twice, my man of the match would be Kieran Trippier, who not only threatened every time he went forward, but tied up our right side, with Marcelo not being allowed to get forward and when he did, Trips was there to snuff him out.

Poch really has taken this team to a new level of performance and has instilled a winning mentality.
 

He looks like him facially; he looks like him in stature and build; he looks like him in the way he moves with the ball and also can't last 90 minutes (only joking Jamie !).

With Spurs being linked to him in the summer, I was sorry to miss out, as I thought he would have been a good addition to the team, but it looks like we might have dodged a bullet on that one.