Tottenham Hotspur Secure 3-0 Win Over Qarabag in Europa League Opener

Tottenham Hotspur kicked off their Europa League group stage campaign with a convincing 3-0 victory over Qarabag on Thursday, despite being reduced to ten men in the eighth minute.

Defender Radu Dragosin’s early dismissal did not deter the English side, as Brennan Johnson scored a powerful shot four minutes later to put Tottenham ahead. Pape Mata Sar doubled the lead seven minutes into the second half, securing a 2-0 advantage for the London club.

Tottenham’s Dominant Performance

Dominic Solanke sealed the win for Tottenham in the 68th minute, capitalizing on goalkeeper Mateusz Kochalski’s mistake. Qarabag had several chances, including a missed penalty kick by Toral Baimarov and a shot that hit the woodwork by Junior, but Tottenham remained in control throughout the match.

Tottenham coach Ange Postecoglou praised his team’s performance, saying, “When the team is reduced to ten players, sometimes you don’t play as aggressively or you don’t keep the ball as much as when you play at full speed, but most of the time it was the intention.”

Other Europa League Matches

In another match, Roma drew 1-1 with Athletic Bilbao, with Aitor Paredes equalizing for the Spanish side near the end. Ukrainian striker Artem Dovpik had put Roma ahead with a powerful header in the 32nd minute.

Rangers secured a 2-0 win over Malmo, thanks to goals from Nadim Birami and Ross McCausland. Ajax Amsterdam dominated Besiktas with a 4-0 victory, with Kian Fitz-Game, Kenneth Taylor, and Mika Khodes scoring the goals.

Olympique Lyonnais defeated Olympiakos 2-0, with second-half goals from Ryan Chergui and Saeed Benrahma. Eintracht Frankfurt drew 3-3 with Viktoria Plzen, as the Czech side managed to come back with two late goals.