Match Report: Hoffenheim 2-3 Tottenham Hotspur | OneFootball

On Thursday evening, at 17:45 GMT — no consideration for those of us that watch The Chase — Spurs took to the field to face Bundesliga side Hoffenheim on match day seven of the Europa League.

For the task at hand, Ange Postecoglu, with an incredibly depleted set of options, went for; Austin; Porro, Dragusin, Davies, Gray; Bergvall, Bentancur, Maddison; Kulusevski, Richarlison, Son.

Match report from Tottenham’s Europa League game in Germany

After just three minutes, Spurs took the lead. A superb ball over the top from Porro found Maddison, whom took a superb touch to kill the ball dead, before firing the ball centrally and into the back of the net. Similar ball from Porro to his one against Liverpool in the Carabao Cup.

With twelve minutes on the clock, a through ball from Kulusevski found Richarlison in behind, though his effort was well kept out by Oliver Baumann. Within 90 seconds, a through ball from Son found Porro in behind, but his left footed effort was dragged wide.

Barely minutes after that, the skipper raced in behind down the left hand side, before chopping inside and firing a shot over the bar. You would usually expect him to curl one towards the far corner from that sort of position.

22 minutes in, it was 2-0. After Hoffenheim lost the ball, Spurs sprung a quick break. From there, a deflected Maddison pass found Son, who went baring down on goal. Via the aid of another deflection, the ball bounced into the back of the net.

Four minutes later, Hoffenheim should have made it 2-1 from a set piece. 33 minutes in, an effort from Tom Bischof — who signed a pre-contract agreement with Bayern Munich earlier this week — had a right footed effort well saved down to his right by Austin. Good agility to get down so fast.

Just over five minutes before half time, Hoffenheim had a chance to get one back, but off balance, Max Moerstedt was unable to get enough power on his effort, and it was saved by Austin.

Less than a minute of the first half was remaining when Spurs had a huge chance to make it three. An inswinging cross from Maddison found Bergvall, but he could not score his header from close range. From the loose ball, Davies ended up having another shot blocked.

In the final seconds of stoppage time, Hoffenheim had a good opportunity from around 12 yards out, but it was superbly blocked by Dragusin. Brilliant defending. That was that for the first half.

Ten minutes into the second period, Andrej Kramaric headed just off target from close range. The opening goal for the hosts felt inevitable, with Spurs living on the edge. Soon after, Moore replaced Richarlison.

After 62 minutes, Hoffenheim had a penalty, after Austin collided with a player. However, common sense prevailed after a monitor check, and the pen plus yellow for Austin were wiped out. Still, Spurs needed to improve.

Within two minutes, it was 2-1, and it was coming. The second half performance was so different. Just really strange.

Nevertheless, Spurs did get a third goal. After Bentancur intercepted a stray pass, he laid the ball to Moore, who found Son out wide. From there, the skipper drilled a left footed shot across goal and into the bottom corner.

Immediately after, he was taken off to get some deserved rest, and was replaced with Will Lankshear — whom got his first minutes since the win over Southampton in mid Decenver.

With two minutes remaining, Hoffenheim made it 3-2. Unmarked header at the back post. Absolutely criminal defending. Horrendous second half performance.

Amidst the chaos, Callum Olusesi replaced Maddison. Five minutes of stoppage time were given, making for a very tense finish.

Although it was a very nervy finish — they generally did see stoppage time out pretty well. Defended set pieces well, and got the ball up the pitch. Credit where it is due.

This win means Spurs are guaranteed a top eight finish — avoiding an extra two games onto the congestion — if they beat Elfsborg at home next week. Hugely important and much needed win.

Finally, a shoutout to Austin. Really happy that he got to play and be on the winning side. Perhaps nothing extraordinary tonight, but a couple of good saves, and excellent at catching crosses and relieving pressure. Let's hope he can go out with a win next week, in what could well be his last game for the club.