Vitesse vs Tottenham LIVE: Europa Conference League result, final score and reaction tonight
Maximilian Wittek’s 78th-minute strike was enough to secure the points and leave Spurs in real bother sat in third in Group G
Tottenham’s decision to leave their big guns at home saw them lose 1-0 to Vitesse Arnhem in Group G of Europa Conference League.
The likes of Harry Kane, Son Heung-min, Cristiano Romero and Hugo Lloris did not travel to Holland with Sunday’s clash at West Ham in mind and a second string were undone by Maximilian Wittek’s 78th-minute strike.
The side Nuno Espirito Santo picked still had nine international players, but they were never really in the game and Bryan Gil’s shot that hit the crossbar early in the second half was their only moment of note.
Last time Tottenham played in Holland they enjoyed one of the most famous nights in their history as Lucas Moura’s hat-trick against Ajax sent them through to the Champions League final.
This time the Johan Cruijff ArenA was nothing but a stop on the trainline between Amsterdam and Arnhem and that Moura miracle must seem a long time ago as Spurs now compete in the third tier of European football.
Nuno has shown the competition respect so far, but made it clear where his priorities lay, leaving the entire XI that played 90 minutes at Newcastle last weekend at home to train ahead of Sunday’s Premier League visit to the Hammers.
With the return fixture in a fortnight and then a trip to the weakest team in the competition NS Mura to come, the Portuguese decided that leaving his big guns back in London for this game was a risk worth taking.
It was a gamble because this was a big night for Vitesse, who sold out their GelreDome stadium for the first time in seven years.
Before kick-off their partisan fans held up a banner reading “For the city, the colours and our club: This is our night” and, fresh from a derby win over NEC Nijmegen at the weekend, they started with intent.
Nikolai Baden Frederiksen forced Pierluigi Gollini into a save with his feet after being played in in the third minute and then Jacob Rasmussen flashed a header just wide from a corner.
Unsurprisingly given the amount of changes, Spurs were not up to much in an attacking sense in the first half, with teenage striker Dane Scarlett up against it in a lone role in attack.
They immediately showed more after the break and were within inches of taking the lead in the 47th minute.
Giovani Lo Celso showed why he is becoming a key player for Argentina as he went on an enterprising dribble before laying it off for Gil, whose first-time shot rattled the crossbar.
That was as good as it got for Spurs who were pinned further and further back as the second half wore on, with Eli Dasa twice going close with efforts from distance, the second effort bringing a smart stop out of Gollini.
It was no surprise when the goal came 12 minutes from time as Wittek brilliantly volleyed home Dasa’s cross from the edge of the area to send the home crowd wild.
Vitesse vs Tottenham
Here come the teams. There’s a loud roar from the Vitesse fans as the players make their way out onto the pitch for the first ever meeting between these clubs.
The fans are waving black and yellow flags, there’s a good atmosphere around the ground.
A final word from Nuno
Tottenham boss Nuno Espirito Santo, spoke to BT Sport about Vitesse before kick off saying:
Tonight we must compete. It is going to be tough game as Vitesse are a good team.
“We will focus now and try to pass on all the details of things that could happen in this game.”
Bergwijn returns to the Netherlands
Spurs’ Dutch winger Steven Bergwijn scored 31 goals in 149 senior appearances for PSV Eindhoven before moving to the Premier League side in January 2020. He won three Eredivisie titles with the club and spoke about his time in Holland.
He said:
When I played in Holland, Vitesse were always difficult to play, especially at their stadium.
"They like to play football and they always have good players. It’s not going to be an easy game but we are Tottenham so we need to win and I think we have enough quality."
Vitesse vs English opponents
Vitesse have played six games against English opposition but are yet to win a game. Their best result was a 0-0 draw in the second leg of the first round of the 1993-94 Uefa Cup against Norwich City. They lost the first leg 3-0 and were knocked out.
Liverpool beat them 1-0 in both legs of the 2002-03 Uefa Cup and most recently Southampton cruised to a 5-0 aggregate win in the third qualifying round of the 2015-16 Europa League.
Vitesse vs Tottenham
Vitesse have never played Tottenham in a competitive match but the clubs do have a connection.
Just one player has ever turned out for both clubs: Willem Korsten who played for Vitesse between 1993-1999, before moving to Tottenham Hotspur and playing there from 1999-2002.
Letsch on GelreDome atmosphere
Thomas Letsch has backed Vitesse’s fans to bring a bouncing atmosphere to the GelreDome tonight as a boost to his players as they prepare to face Tottenham.
He told Vitesse TV:
The atmosphere will be great again. The supporters will be behind us from the first minute, especially after the derby win [against NEC on Sunday].
!We want to generate the same energy as against Rennes, Feyenoord and NEC. In a full stadium, anything is possible.”
Nuno defends Tottenham selection policy for Europa Conference League
Tottenham Hotspur boss Nuno Espirito Santo does not think it is a risk to leave his big guns at home for the Europa Conference League trip to Vitesse Arnhem.
Nuno has confirmed that none of the outfield players who started last weekend’s 3-2 win at Newcastle will travel to Holland for Thursday night’s game, instead staying in London to train with Sunday’s trip to West Ham in mind.
Nuno defends Tottenham selection policy for Europa Conference League
Nuno has confirmed that none of the outfield players who started last weekend’s 3-2 win at Newcastle will travel to the Netherlands for Thursday night’s game
Record-breaking Vitesse
Vitesse are currently on a record-breaking run, having found the net in six consecutive European matches for the first time.
Their last 12 goals were scored by nine different players. Only Maximilian Wittek (three) and Matúš Bero (two) have scored more than once during this period.
Tonight’s venue: The GelreDome
Vitesse’s home ground is situated in Arnhem, a city east of Rotterdam and located in the South-Eastern part of the Netherlands.
Their stadium, the GelreDome, sold out for the first time in years for tonight’s confrontation with Tottenham and the regular capacity of 21,248 has been expanded to approximately 24,000.
Tottenham’s winning ways
Tottenham are unbeaten in three games across all competitions since a 3-0 defeat to North London rivals Arsenal in the Premier League back in September.
Over those three games Spurs have scored 10 goals and conceded just four. Last weekend they came from behind at St. James’ Park to defeat Newcastle 3-2 and have built up an air of confidence after a rocky start to the season.
Can they continue their winning run this evening?
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