Tottenham cruise to victory as they remain unbeaten in the group stages

Tottenham cruise to victory as they remain unbeaten in the group stages
broganclasper
By Brogan Clasper
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With that comes the end to tonight's live commentary from Wembley of the Champions League clash between Spurs and APOEL. I have been Brogan Clasper running you through the events, until next time.

Spurs' attention will now return to the Premier League as they face Stoke on Saturday and then Brighton on Wednesday - both at Wembley. With eyes on the round of 16 draw on Monday morning.

That is it for Tottenham's group stage journey. A tremendous display over the past four months for the Lilywhite's who have defied the odds to finish top of Group H.

FULL TIME!

90+2' - Tottenham playing the ball around the back, letting the clock wind down.

90' - A minimum of THREE MINUTES will be added.

89' - The referee has a quick word with Aurier who has kicked the corner flag over - he is already on a yellow card.

Tottenham Substitution: Dele OFF Sterling ON

86' - Sterling still waiting to come on.

APOEL Substitution: Pote OFF Antoniou ON

83' - Here we go, Kazaiah Sterling, is about to enter the game.

80' - N'Koudou finally gets his first Spurs goal - after turning onto his favoured right foot his shot is deflected beyond the keeper.

GOAL TOTTENHAM!

78' - Just over 10 minutes to go and the game looks to be winding down here - will we see Sterling and Amos as Pochettino said?

77' - Sanchez concedes a cheap foul on the half-way line.

77' - Dembele caught in possession in the middle of the pitch - sloppy.

76' - APOEL have improved on their first-half performance, not enough to concern Spurs though.

APOEL Substitution: Aloneftis OFF de Camargo ON

72' - Sissoko breaks before turning back on himself - wasteful.

70' - A clear exchange of words between Rose and Pochettino as the boss substitutes the left-back due to Rose's cut to the head.

Tottenham Substitution: Rose OFF Walker-Peters ON

68' - Curse of the commentator as Rose goes straight in the book - after reacting badly to a foul from Sallai.

67' - Rose working the left side well, whipping in numerous crosses for Llorente.

Tottenham Substitution: Son OFF Dembele ON

64' - Straight after Aurier stands on Alonefits' ankle and is branded a yellow card - could have been a red!

63' - Silly foul from Foyth, should have just stood Aloneftis up but instead concedes a cheap foul.

62' - Spurs break through Sissoko and plays in N'Koudou who forces the keeper into a save.

60' - Dembele is getting ready to join the action tonight.

56' - Some quick feet from Dele Alli goes to waste as Llorente is found offside just seconds after.

55' - Some good play from the visitors but a poor shot goes well wide of Vorm's goal.

53' - Wide from N'Koudou as he tries to whip the ball into the corner but it is deflected wide for a corner.

52' - APOEL appeal for a penalty but there is not much in it and the referee does not think so either.

49' - The closest APOEL have come as Vouros' short is deflected by Danny Rose past the post.

48' - Llorente surges forward but miscues his through ball to Son.

47' - Tottenham substitutes doing their stretches - likely changes will be made shortly.

APOEL Substitution: Vinicius OFF Sallai ON

46' - We are back underway at Wembley - one change for the away team.

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Give it another 10/15 minutes and should Spurs still be as comfortable, we will likely see the inclusion of Sterling and Amos.

A totally dominant first half performance from the Lilywhite's. They look to have put the game to bed already - not to forget the West Ham come back in the Carabao Cup.

45' - HALF TIME!

43' - Son looks full of confidence as he shoots from 25-yards out forcing Perez into turning the shot round the post.

40' - Half chance for APOEL, Pote is unable to direct his header goal bound.

37' - It is Heung-min Son this time who doubles Spurs' lead. A beautiful finish on his left foot after a neat one-two with Llorente.

37' - GOAL SPURS!

35' - APOEL slowly beginning to grow into the game.

33' - Sanchez slides in and gives away a free kick. Silly from the man who was sent off on the weekend.

30' - A long ball over the top is intercepted by Rose as Ebecilio chased.

28' - Aloneftis gets down the left for APOEL. However, Aurier intercepts well before setting Sissoko away.

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Llorente up and running.

25' - Vorm comes 40-yards out his goal to pass the ball- little else for the Spurs captain to do so far.

22' - Tottenham cruising as they continue to pressure the Cypriots.

21' - That goal sets APOEL back to bottom spot having temporarily moved up to third.

20' - Llorente grabs his first goal for Spurs as he turns his man and fires the ball home from close range.

20' - GOAL SPURS!

16' - Tottenham with all the possession but very slow in their attack.

14' - Freekick to the visitors, very strange decision from the referee as he awards it against Winks for a high foot.

13' - Poor from Sissoko as he goes for a speculate pass instead of the simple option.

10' - Pote is fouled by Juan Foyth, some positive news coming out of the Bernabeu for APOEL as the home side go 1-0 up over Dortmund.

9' - Somehow the ball does not cross the line, as N'Koudou hits the post from three yards out.

7' - Son latches onto a Llorente header but fires wide on the volley.

6' - Dele holding his thigh, Spurs fans will hope this isn't anything serious.

4' - Nothing comes of the corner and Spurs continue to pressure their visitors.

3' - Corner for Spurs after Son forces Perez into a save.

3' - first chance of the night for the Lilywhite's, Aurier's strike from outside the box goes just wide.

2' - Llorente concedes an early foul.

1' - KICK OFF! We're underway under the arch.

Teams now in the tunnel, plenty of traveling support from Cyprus for APOEL.

The players have finished their warm-up and returned to the changing rooms ahead of kick-off.

No pressure on the home side tonight. However, it will provide a better look at their squad depth as APOEL will be out to do their best to clinch a spot in the Europa League.

As for APOEL, striker de Camargo who gave Spurs some problems back in September will watch from the sidelines.

APOEL Substitutes: Gudino, De Camargo, Alexandrou, Sallai, Antoniou, Farias, Merkis.

APOEL Starting XI: Perez, Lago, Rueda, Ebecilio, Pote, Vinicius, Zahid, Morais, Vouros, Aloneftis, Carlao.

Notably, Amos and Sterling feature on the bench and are likely to get some minutes under their belts later on in the game.

As predicted in our preview, there has been some major changes to the Spurs starting XI. Still, a strong outfit put out by boss Pochettino.

Tottenham Substitutes: Gazzaniga, Davies, Vertonghen, Walker-Peters, Amos, Dembele, Sterling.

Tottenham Starting XI: Vorm (C), Aurier, Sanchez, Foyth, Rose, Winks, Sissoko, Dele, Nkoudou, Son, Llorente.

Over an hour still until kick-off, but we have some early team news from Spurs.

He also commented on their recent form: 'No, I’m not worried. The performances have been good. We are frustrated because the results are not good, but not with the performances.'

Pochettino commented on his squad rotation: 'We are going to rest some players, of course, to rotate the starting XI but Dele is going to play. He missed three Champions League games because he was banned. He is fresh. He is ready to play.'

We go into every game thinking we can in and that's the mentality we have to have going forward.'

When asked if their European form has come as a surprise, he added: 'When we first got the draw, it was a tough group but we're very confident in ourselves.

We'll show our character in the way we bounce back in the next few games.'

On Tottenham's poor recent form, Dele said: 'We're disappointed with the results in the recent games but everyone has a dip in form. I think the other clubs will have a dip in form.

Ahead of the clash Dele Alli and Mauricio Pochettino faced the media at Hotspur Way.

APOEL Nicosia Key Players: In September, Efstathios Aloneftis proved to be a thorn in the side of the Spurs defence. His trickery and link-up play with striker, Igor de Camargo proved too much for Spurs to handle at some points.

(continued) Meanwhile, Spanish striker Fernando Llorente will be out to get off the mark for Tottenham. He has not scored since arriving at the Londoners in September.

Tottenham Key Players: With Kane rested, Heung-min Son is Spurs' obvious main threat, a player with good pace and excellent finishing - he will certainly give the visitor's defence problems.

(continued) Meaning on-loan goalkeeper Raúl Gudiño will continue his Champions League spell.

APOEL Nicosia Team News: APOEL are likely to feature a very similar team which put on a brave performance against the Lilywhites in Cyprus. With one main absentee, goalkeeper Boy Waterman is not included in the side.

(continued) In their place, youngsters Luke Amos and Kazaiah Sterling are said to possibly be in with a chance of featuring over the course of the game. Fernando Llorente and Heung-min Son are likely to start up-front.

Tottenham Team News: After guaranteeing top spot against Dortmund last month, boss Mauricio Pochettino is set to rest key players such as Harry Kane, Christian Eriksen and Hugo Lloris - who look in need of a rest.

Tottenham claimed a 3-0 victory in their away fixture to APOEL back in September. The scoreline perhaps flattering Spurs who were not quite at the races that night - but for a Harry Kane masterclass.

However, in the Champions League Spurs remain unbeaten and top Group H on 13 points - three points ahead of European giants Real Madrid.

Spurs will welcome a break from their Premier League campaign following a recent spell of poor form. The Lilywhites have taken just five points in their last six league games.

Good evening everyone and welcome to VAVEL UK's live minute-by-minute commentary of this evening's Champions League clash between Tottenham Hotspur and APOEL Nicosia, I'm Brogan Clasper and I'll be taking you through the game at Wembley.