Spurs stutter in Europa League as Osimhen shows his worth in Galatasaray win
Tottenham had enjoyed a morale-boosting week coming into this clash, defeating Manchester City in the EFL Cup before hammering UEFA Champions League outfit Aston Villa 4-1 at the weekend.
However, in Galatasaray, they faced the UEL’s joint-top goalscorers as well as the unbeaten Turkish Süper Lig leaders, and in front of their own supporters, Aslanlar were eager to put on a show.
The first half turned out to be one-way traffic as Galatasaray were dominant almost from start to finish, and needed just six minutes to break the deadlock.
It was a strike worthy of winning any match, too, as Yunus Akgün volleyed a stunning effort into the top corner from outside the area.
Against the run of play, Spurs did equalise with what proved to be their only shot of the half, as Will Lankshear netted his first goal for the club by tapping in Brennan Johnson’s first-time cross.
However, that provided only temporary respite for the visitors, with Galatasaray soon back in full control.
Fraser Forster was arguably his team’s best player before the break, twice denying Victor Osimhen his first goals of the UEL campaign.
Still, the Englishman was ultimately powerless to prevent the Nigerian from netting a brace – first, the 25-year-old fired into the bottom corner after Mauro Icardi won the ball high up the pitch, before delicately directing Barış Yılmaz’s pinpoint cross into the net.
He may have had a hat-trick had he not strayed offside before dispatching another through ball, but the fact they were only two goals down at HT was the only silver lining for Ange Postecoglou’s side.
Only the 15-minute break halted the onslaught, as inside 60 seconds of the restart, Icardi headed wide before Abdülkerim Bardakcı had a shot blocked on the line.
Subsequently, Osimhen headed over before having another effort kept out by Forster, who was also required to stop Yılmaz and Akgün once more.
Prior to these final two efforts, Spurs suffered another setback as Lankshear, in just his second appearance for Tottenham, was sent off following a second yellow card.
Incredibly, the away team had another goal in them, with substitute Dominic Solanke’s clever flick finding the back of the net.
That was one of only three shots they had all evening, and Galatasaray only ever looked like extending their advantage after that.
The scoreline is rather lenient on Tottenham, who suffer their first loss of this league phase.
Galatasaray, meanwhile, have 10 points from their four matches and are already on the brink of confirming their place in the knockout stages.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Victor Osimhen (Galatasaray SK)
