Arguably the underdogs heading into the fixture, Marseille quickly stepped onto the front foot against a Tottenham Hotspur side clearly under pressure to avoid the embarrassment of an early exit in the UCL.
Former North London rival Alexis Sanchez (33) particularly proved to be a thorn in the side of his old nemesis, testing Hugo Lloris at his near post with an early snapshot.
It wasn’t the last time the Frenchman was tested in the first half, either, with Jordan Veretout’s volley forcing a diving save, before the hosts finally made their deserved breakthrough, courtesy of Chancel Mbemba (28).
The central defender nodded home past Lloris after a pinpoint corner from Veretout just before the break.
Sitting third in Group D at the break, Spurs couldn’t afford a slow start to the second half after a frustrating first period.
And, much to their relief, they soon had their equaliser through Clément Lenglet (27), who nodded into the ground and into the back of the net via Ivan Perišić’s free-kick with 54 minutes gone.
Just 10 minutes later, the visitors would have taken the lead, too, if it wasn’t for the linesman’s flag to cut Harry Kane’s celebrations short after the striker broke in behind Marseille’s backline before slotting into the near post.
With a point taking Spurs into the knockout phase, it was Marseille who were left in dire need of a winning goal in the closing stages.
Instead, it was Spurs who looked like securing all three points, with Pierre-Emile Højbjerg (27) smashing an effort against the crossbar inside the area.
Although, former Arsenal player Sead Kolasinac (29) will undoubtedly be kicking himself, having spurned a glorious opportunity to nod home a late winner.
With that opportunity wasted, Spurs had the chance to win the group, and did just that when Højbjerg broke in the last minute before smashing in off the post.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Ivan Perišić (Tottenham Hotspur)
