|
|
|
|
|
Tottenham will take an away goal with them to White
Hart Lane as they attempt to qualify to the UEFA Cup
semi-final. Mido returned from injury and travelled
to Seville, but remained on the bench. Hossam Ghaly,
meanwhile, came on near the end of the match.
Read also:
Osasuna achieved a 3-0 victory at Bayer
Leverkusen, making them the likely opponents for Spurs
should the English side complete the job in London.
The bigger loss of the day wasn't on the pitch, but
off it. Crowd troubles saw police involvement and Spurs
may face disciplinary action following their fans' behaviour.
It was perhaps ignited by the referee's poor decision
to give a penalty to Sevilla when keeper Paul Robinson
had clearly won the ball. This led to the equalising
goal from former Tottenham striker Fredi Kanoute, who
coolly finished from the spot.
Spurs had already scored less than two minutes into
the game, after Dimitar Berbatov found Robbie Keane,
who managed to finish after the ball fell nicely for
him inside the box.
But Kanoute's equaliser put Sevilla on top, and before
the interval, they went into the lead after pressure
in the box led to a free header from Kerzhakov.
The second half was less exciting, but Spurs managed
to hold on well and Sevilla only had a few chances.
Kanoute, who was sold while Mido was considered first
choice, came close on more than one occasion.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Spurs lacked creativity and looked happy to hold onto the 2-1
loss. A game in 39 hours at Stamford Bridge against the champions
made them save energy .Perhaps it was a good sign that Ghaly
didn't start, as he may be more ready for Chelsea than others
and perhaps play that game from the beginning.
In the final ten minutes, Steed Malbranque was introduced
for an ineffective Aaron Lennon, before Hossam Ghaly came
on for Teemu Tainio. Ghaly had just over six minutes on the
right wing. He did well to make ground up the park and delivered
two or three decent looking crosses into the centre, only
for them to be cleared by the towering defence. Ghaly also
showed some good hold-up play before being put to the ground
and winning a free-kick, but to add to this, made a foul himself.
After losing out to the ball on the right flank, he gave a
small push to his opponent, who dived dramatically. The linesman
flagged and Ghaly went face to face with him to question the
decision.
On the whole, neither side will be overly fond of the score-line,
though Spurs will know that the away goal has given them a
good chance against the La Liga leaders and UEFA Cup holders.
More soon on EP...
|
|
|
|
|
