David Hytner's match report
Thanks for joining me, and you can follow PSG v Real Madrid here …
And Shakhtar v Man City here …
Harry Kane's verdict
“When we go 2-0 up after two minutes, we put ourselves in a great position. After that I thought we controlled the game, before that we didn’t play too well. But then [we conceded], which was disappointing. The second half was kind of 50-50. We could have kept the ball better after that.”
Asked if they’ve made things difficult for themselves, he says: “Yeah, I think so. We wanted to get off to a winning start. We’re definitely backing ourselves to get through but we’ve got a lot of improving to do.”
Spurs have made a better start to their campaign than they did last season - and, indeed, they’ve begun better than Liverpool and Chelsea did this week - but they will leave Greece regretting the way they let a two-goal lead slip, albeit a two-goal lead that they had not done much to earn. This was an opportunity missed, and there were several worrying poor individual performances (Eriksen and Alli most notably). Still, one point away from home is an acceptable start and the way it came will be forgotten if Spurs improve and advance. But improve they must.
90+4 min: Sissoko mislays a pass in midfield for the umpteenth time since coming on. The another Frenchman, Lloris, makes a mess of his attempt to cut out a cross, and ends up giving away a corner...
90+3 min: Eriksen balloons a long pass in the general direction of Son, who never had a real chance of getting on the end of it.
90+2 min: Spurs are looking by far the more likely next scorers ....
90min: There will be at least five more minutes ...
90 min: Sharp attacking by Spurs, with Lamela leading the sharp. But Son’s eventual cross from the left lacks accuracy.
Olympiakos substitution: El Arabi on, Geurrero off.
88 min: Winks booked for what looked to me like a good tackle in midfield.
86 min: Eriksen’s corner is headed clear at the near post. But Spurs regain it, and Lamela burrows his way into the left-hand side of the area and opens fire from an acute angle. The keeper bats it away. Kane is furious: he was lurking for a the pull-back.
Updated
85 min: Spurs build menacingly around the Olympiakos box. The hsots are hanging on for a point now. Semedo does well to deflect a header by Kane out for a corner. Eriksen will take it ...
82 min: Spurs play their way calmly out from their own area, then Sissoko injects some pizzazz with powerful run through the middle until he’s brought down. The freekick is wasted.
Olympiakos substitution: Randjelovic on, Masouras off.
80 min: Olympiakos appear to be tiring, and that’s giving Spurs a little more time and space on the ball. That’s good news for Eriksen. Maybe he’ll have the last laugh yet?
78 min: Sissoko, under no pressure, turns sideways in midfield and tries to roll the wide to Sanchez. But instead he donks it straight out of play.
Spurs substitution: Lamela on, Moura off. The Brazilian seemed to suffer a bit of cramp. Pity, because he had been playing well until then, much better than Eriksen, for one.
Updated
72 min: Elbadellaouis drops an intelligent pass in behind Davies, apparently knowing that Podence is much faster that the full-back. Sure enough, Podence makes up the ground quickly and beats Davies to the ball before pulling it back for Guerrero at the edge of the area. But that’s as good as the move got, because the forward’s shot flies into the stands.
Summary
Spurs substitution: Son on, Alli off. It had to be done.
Updated
71 min: Sanchez does well to head the ball out for a corner while under serious pressure. Tsimikas delivers an out-swinger. Sanchez heads that away too.
70 min: Guerrero, working back,shunts Winks to the ground to give Spurs a freekick mid-way inside the Olympiakos half. Eriksen clips it into the area. Sanchez nods it down well, but a defenders gets to it first.
Olympiakos substitution: Benzia on, Valbuena off. The Frenchman was excellent but fresher legs are needed now.
67 min: Moura goes foraging down the right again. He finds space to slam over a low cross. Meriah scoops it away near the penalty spot. This is a promising spell from Spurs, insofar as they are having most of the ball, and in opposing territory, to boot.
65 min: A ball ricochets off a defender into the path off Alli, who finds himself bearing down on goal at a difficult angle. Kane is calling for a pass in the middle. Alli chooses to shoot, and Jose Sa saves his low shot with his feet. The ensuing corner yields nothing.
Updated
63 min: Podence has his dancing shoes on again and he’s bringing cheers from the crowd every time he gets on the ball. Valbuena, too, is in a groove. Allo clumps in to him to give away a freekick. It’s delivered into a dicey area, but Lloris rushes out to snatch the ball.
Updated
Spurs substitution: Sissoko on, Ndombele off. The next changes should be Son and Lamela for Alli and Eriksen.
61 min: Moura’s cross from the right is headed clear by Semedo.
59 min: Eriksen is again caught in possession just outside his own box, but this time the ref judges that he was fouled.
56 min: Corner to Spurs after Elbadellaoui puts out a cross by Davies. Davies’ delivery is cleared as far as Ndombele, who shifts the ball on to his let foot and thrashes a decent effort goalwards from 25 yards. José Sa saves it comfortably.
GOAL! Olympiaos 2-2 Spurs (Valbuena pen 54)
Valbeuna sends Lloris the wrong way with a firm sidefooter, and Spurs have frittered away a two-goal lead that they didn’t do much to earn in the first place. Easy come, easy go. And now they have a hard job containing a buoyant home team for the rest of this game. It’s up for grabs now...
Updated
Penalty to Olympiaos!
Vertonghen trod on the striker’s foot, after a mistake by Eriksen had put Spurs back under pressure. VAR is mulling things over, so who knows when and if the spotkick will be taken ...
Updated
49 min: Eriksen springs to life to curl a ball from the right-hand corner of the box to Alli, who finished smartly. But he was offside.
Updated
48 min: “Eriksen is having a ‘mare, and I’d like to see Rose and Son come on,” storms XG. “I agree that the ‘cult of Kane’ cost Spurs in the CL Final, Kane was way below fitness. Tottenham have a very difficult 45 plus ahead of ‘em.” Yes, they do, but the first three of them have gone quite smoothly. You’re also right about Eriksen, he’s been plod. But there’s no chance of Rose coming on: he’s back in England.
46 min: No changes during the break. Spurs begin the second half brightly, showing a good deal more zip than they did for most of the first. Guess Pochettino gave them a jolt.
Updated
Half-time: Olympiakos 1-2 Spurs
Spurs have the lead but Pochettino has plenty to be displeased about: his team started sluggishly before being gifted a precious goal. When Lucas Moura netted a beauty four minutes after Kane’s penalty, Spurs suddenly had the game almost in the bag. But Podence’s goal just before the break means things could get very uncomfortable again for Spurs in the second half.
Updated
GOAL! Olympiakos 1-2 Spurs (Podence 43)
After being quiet for a spell, Podence bursts back into life and reawakens this contest! It was a lovely goal, the hosts cutting through Spurs with rapid running and passing. Podence played a one-two with Valebuena and then fired a low shot beyond Lloris from 10 yards.
Updated
41 min: “That Moura fellow is quite good,” declares budding talent scout Matthew Richman. “I still will never comprehend why he didn’t earn the nod in Spurs’ last European outing.” Not a convert to the cult of Kane, then?
40 min: Alli fizzes a decent effort over the bar from 20 yards.
39 min: Tsimikas lashes over another good cross, again unperturbed by Eriksen’s token effort to pressurise him. But no one can get on the end of this particular delivery.
38 min: Olympiakos are trying to work up another head of steam but Spurs have their number now. Podence has faded. Valbuena is still probing and Tsimikas is making dangerous bursts down the left, but Tottenham are looking fairly comfortable now.
35 min: Spurs are trying to take charge of this game now by hogging the ball and deflating the hosts. There are even hints that they could increase their lead because Moura is continually making clever runs - one precise pass and he’ll be in again.
33 min: Tsimikas curls a cross in from the left ... and Masouras, totally free 10 yards out, makes a mess of a volley. Lucky Tottenham!
GOAL! Olympiakos 0-2 Spurs (Moura 30)
What a goal! Davies intercepted a pass inside the opposing half then fed Moura, who took one touch and then swung his right foot to wallop a spectacular shot into the net from 20 yards! Spurs were in plenty of bother five minutes ago but suddenly they’re strolling along Easy Street!
Updated
28 min: Valbuena yet again collects the ball between midfield and defence with no one near him. He has time to turn around and size up a shot from nearly 25 yards. he curls it wide, but he’s capable of much better than that so Spurs would be well advised to start putting the clamp on him. That may be the point Pochettino is making as he hollers angrily from the sidelines.
GOAL! Olympiakos 0-1 Spurs (Kane pen 26)
Kane dinks it down the middle as the keeper goes to the right-hand side. Spurs, who’ve barely threatened so far, have the lead!
Updated
Penalty to Spurs!
Kane goes down under a tackle by Meriah. But VAR need to look at it. The home team are outraged with the original decision, or at least making out that they are. But the decision stands - quite right, too, there was indeed a trip - a quite daft one - by Meriah.
Updated
22 min: Pochettino is very irate on the sidelines. He can see the hosts growing in confidence while Spurs remain sluggish, especially in midfield.
20 min: Meriah makes another mistake at the back, gifting the ball to Eriksen, who helps it on to Kane, who loses it.
18 min: Wonderful by Olympiakos! Podence switched play with a splendid pass from right to left. Tsimikas hurtled to the byline and send over a fine cross. Podence, near the penalty spot, helped it on with a delighted chested pass to Guerrero, who hammered a volley towards the far corner .... but it bounces out off the post! That would have been a super goal and, in fairness, a reflection of Olympiakos’ greater vibrancy so far.
Updated
16 min: Meriah, attempting to sashay his way out fro the back, runs into trouble in midfield, allowing Eriksen to nick the ball and skitter towards the box. Kane is free to his right and pleading to be slipped in ... but Eriksen runs straight into the last defender.
Updated
15 min: “How has Sanchez done so far? asks Peter Farrell. He’s done well. Mind you, most of Olympiakos’ attacks have gone down the other flank, where Potence looks dangerous.
13 min: Solid work by Winks, scampering back to make two important tackles on the edge of the area after Olympiaos launched a counter-attack.
10 min: A useful buildup by Tottenham, until Eriksen misdirects a chipped pass from the left, sending to the goalkeeper rather than Moura, who was looking for a better ball over the top.
8 min: Sharp play by Podence, who pounces on a mistake in midfield by Ndombele and then embarks on a fast and elusive run forward. His shot at the end takes a deflection, making it easy for Lloris.
7 min: Semedo, who was a big fitness doubt for this game owing to recent knee surgery, looks sprightly as he runs across to cut out a pass by Kane intended for Moura.
5 min: Guilherme plays a quick low pass forward into the space vacated by Davies. Podence races on to it and into the right-hand side of the box. He cracks off a low drive from 16 yards that Lloris saves with little bother.
Updated
4 min: Prolonged boos accompany Spurs’ first bit of possession play. It doesn’t put off the visitors - in fact, it seems to inspire Sanchez, who collects a pass wide on the right and then jinks past Masouras, who trips him.
3 min: After some bright interplay by the hosts, Sanchez gets involved in the game for the first time but he’s a little over-eager and gives away a freekick. Moments later Alli arrives even later into a tackle on Podence, giving the Greeks a chance to send a cross into the area. But the delivery is shoddy.
Updated
1 min: Olympiakos get the ball moving amid loud battle cries from their fans.
The teams are in the tunnel. Lloris and his counterpart, Elabdellaoui, look relaxed as they share a giggle. But the home team’s goalkeeper, Jose Sa, looks curiousl confused as he walks out into the arena, almost as if he doesn’t recognise the place. When the Champions League jingle starts up, the home crowd try to drown it out with boos and songs.
Updated
Pochettino speaks
He has just shared his pre-match thoughts with BT Sport, but I’m not going to bother typing them out because you can easily guess what they are (“it’s going to be a tough task”, and absolutely nothing of note about his team selection - especially the right-back decision).
Teams
Tanguy Ndombele is back for Tottenham, who demote Moussa Sissoko to the bench. Lucas Moura gets a big vote of confidence in the form of a starting place ahead of Heung-min Son, while Dele Alli also returns for his first start of the season. Davinson Sanchez has a big challenge on his hands as he is deployed at right-back (Serge Aurier has not travelled). Daniel Podence, Olympiaks’ talented Portuguese winger, may fancy having a run at him and Davis.
Olympiakos; José Sa; Elabdellaoui, Meriah, Semedo, Tsimkas; Guilherme, Bouchalkis; Masouras, Valbuena, Podence; Guerrero
Subs: Allain, Camara, Beniza, El Arabi, Papadpoulos, Torosidis, Radjelovic
Spurs: Lloris; Sanchez, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Davis; Winks, Ndombele; Moura, Alli, Eriksen; Kane
Subs: Gazzaniga, Son, Lamela, Wanyama, Dier, Walker-Peters, Sissoko
Referee: G Rocchi (Italy)
Updated
Preamble
Hello and welcome. Now let’s see what Tottenham are made of. Last season they enjoyed the sweetest European adventure in the club’s history but ended up with a feeling of vinegary regret, losing a non-event of a final. Has that experience made them stronger and wiser? Or will they be weakened by a sense that their best chance for Champions League glory has been and gone? The distraction of the transfer window has definitely been and gone – for now – and Spurs were fearsome when demolishing Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday in what was their best performance since the Champions League final. So they’re looking good heading in today’s game.
But Olympiakos are no Crystal Palace. Despite never making it beyond the quarter-final of a continental competition they are an authentic European force, if only at home. Their previous victims in Piraeus include Liverpool, Juventus, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Manchester United, Borussia Dortmund, Arsenal, AC Milan and, yes, Burnley. They have not lost any of their last nine European matches, and the three that they played in this stadium en route to this season’s group stages ended 4-0, 2-0 and 4-0 in their favour. In fact, they’ve only conceded one goal anywhere in any competition this season (in a 2-1 victory at Krasnodor). But they’ve yet to face anyone as good as Spurs, and their most creative player is 34-year-old Mathieu Valbuena, who is wonderful on his day but no longer used to playing at the intensity that Spurs will hope to impose today.
Mauricio Pochettino will certainly want his team to make a better start to the group stages than they did last season, when they lost their first two matches and wound up in a very uncomfortable position. Granted, they managed to extricate themselves from it but not in a way that can be easily repeated: far better, then, to avoid getting into such a mess in the first place. With Bayern Munich and Red Star Belgrade also in this group, it is important for Spurs to avoid defeat today. And winning would do them a power of good.
In other words: let’s be having you!
