Tottenham Hotspur have secured a 2-1 win over Anderlecht in Thursday night's Europa League Group J clash at White Hart Lane, with Mousa Dembele clinching all three points for the hosts at the death.
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The visitors were first to threaten in the game when Stefano Okaka showed good strength to get forward into the area before being halted in his tracks by Jan Vertonghen.
At the other end, Kieran Trippier got into space to whip in a teasing cross from the right, but Serigne Mbodji was on hand to hack the ball before it could reach Harry Kane.
In the eighth minute Anderlecht's Steven Defour arrowed an effort at goal from outside the box, forcing Hugo Lloris to tip the ball out for a corner.
Youri Tielemans was next to threaten for the visitors as he received a pass and let rip with a shot from 30 yards out, but the ball missed the left post by a whisker.
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Mauricio Pochettino's charges were able to work their way back into the game and went on to take the lead with their first concrete chance of the game just before the half-hour mark.
With the visitors momentarily down to 10 men, Christian Eriksen rolled the ball to Kane on the edge of the box, and the England striker rifled into the left corner of the net with a shot on the turn.
Spurs ended the first half on top, but Anderlecht were invigorated after the restart as both teams weighed in with attacking forays and chances in both final thirds.
Just after the hour Ben Davies unleashed a thunderous effort from the edge of the box, which smashed against the bar and out of danger as the hosts regained a foothold on the game.
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This would not last for long, however, as Defour sent a dangerous ball into the area in the 71st minute, where Imoh Ezekiel surged through the Tottenham defence and fire home off the post.
Just as it seemed like the game would finish as a draw, Dembele emphatically clinched all three points for Spurs after picking up Son Heung-min's layoff and launching a ferocious shot into the net from long range.
The result sees Spurs go back to the top of Group J with seven points from four games, though just three points separate them from bottom-placed Anderlecht.
Giuseppe Labellarte
