Tranmere vs Tottenham: Spurs run riot against League Two rovers

Tranmere 0-7 Tottenham: Relive all the action from the FA Cup third round tie at Prenton Park

Tranmere v Tottenham: FA Cup match preview

Tottenham recorded the biggest away win in club history on Friday as Fernando Llorente scored a hat trick to help crush fourth-tier Tranmere 7-0 in the third round of the FA Cup.

Tranmere held out until Serge Aurier got Tottenham rolling with a strike from 25 meters (27 yards) five minutes before halftime.

Son Heung-min set up Llorente and Aurier early in the second half and made it 4-0 with a goal of his own in the 57th.

Llorente then added back-to-back goals in the 71st and 72nd before late substitute Harry Kane capped the demolition.

Besides the biggest road victory for the club founded in 1882, it was also its largest margin of victory since beating Wigan Athletic 9-1 in 2009.

AP

Relive all the action below:

[4 January 2019 17:11 · Jack de Menezes]

Good evening and welcome to The Independent's live coverage of today's FA Cup third round clash between Tranmere Rovers and Tottenham Hotspur, brought to you from Prenton Park.

Kick-off is at 7:45pm this evening with the teams due to be announced an hour before, when we'll begin our full build-up towards one of the most eagerly anticipated weekends on the calendar.

[4 January 2019 18:48 · Callum Rice-Coates]

  ↵Team News

The Tottenham team is in!

[4 January 2019 18:52 · Callum Rice-Coates]

Changes

Spurs have made eight changes to their starting lineup for tonight's trip to Tranmere. Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen are left out, but this is still a strong team. Dele Alli, Lucas Moura and Son Heung-min give most Premier League defences nightmares, so Tranmere will need to be at their best to stop them.

[4 January 2019 18:53 · Callum Rice-Coates]

And here's Tranmere's team. Watch out for James Norwood, League Two's top scorer with 16 goals to his name so far this season.

[4 January 2019 18:59 · Callum Rice-Coates]

This is a big night for the home supporters at a sold-out Prenton Park. But it's one they should enjoy. After enduring a difficult few years - the Birkenhead club dropped out of the Football League and into the National League - Tranmere are now back in League 2 and challenging for the playoffs. Expect a raucous atmosphere at Prenton Park this evening.

For Tottenham, the expectation will be comfortable progression into the fourth round of the FA Cup. They know, though, how tricky a visit to a League 2 side can be. Spurs were held to a draw by Newport County in last year's competition, a result they will hope is not replicated tonight.

[4 January 2019 19:01 · Callum Rice-Coates]

[4 January 2019 19:11 · Callum Rice-Coates]

Tranmere and Tottenham have not played each other since the 2001-2002 season, when Spurs won 4-0 at Prenton Park in the League Cup third round and 4-0 at White Hart Lane in the FA Cup fifth round. The home side will be hoping for a very different scoreline this time around.

[4 January 2019 19:16 · Callum Rice-Coates]

Here's some excellent pre-match reading to whet the appetite: Miguel Delaney on the meaning of the FA Cup.

[4 January 2019 19:23 · Callum Rice-Coates]

The atmosphere at Prenton Park is building nicely now.

[4 January 2019 19:31 · Callum Rice-Coates]

Dele Alli will lead Spurs out tonight. He's got experience of playing at a lower level with MK Dons, so that may well be the thinking behind it. Pochettino has often been accused of not approaching cup competitions seriously, but that isn't the case tonight. He's fielding a strong team, which should be good enough to secure victory and keep Spurs in the hunt for another trophy.