90min

Lokomotiv Plovdiv 1-2 Tottenham: Player Ratings as Spurs Limp Through to Next Round Against Nine Men

By Matt O'Connor-Simpson

Tottenham left it late to beat nine-men Lokomotiv Plovdiv 2-1
Tottenham left it late to beat nine-men Lokomotiv Plovdiv 2-1 / Nikolay Doychinov/Getty Images
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Tottenham limped through to the next round of the Europa League with a 2-1 victory over nine-men Lokomotiv Plovdiv on Thursday night.

Spurs were all over the hosts in the first half and should have had a penalty when Steven Bergwijn was tripped in the box.

The visitors were made to rue their missed chances when Plovdiv took a shock lead through a Georgi Minchev header. Soon after, chaos ensued as the home side had two men sent off before Harry Kane converted a penalty to even things up.

Conceding against Plovdiv is a strong contender for the worst Tottenham moment of the decade
Conceding against Plovdiv is a strong contender for the worst Tottenham moment of the decade / Nikolay Doychinov/Getty Images

Substitute Tanguy Ndombele then saved Spurs' blushes by tapping in with just under ten minutes to play.

Here's 90min's player ratings from a strange night in Bulgaria's ancient city...

1. Goalkeepers & Defenders

Lloris will be disappointed to have conceded against such meagre opposition
Lloris will be disappointed to have conceded against such meagre opposition / Alex Pantling/Getty Images

Hugo Lloris (GK) - 5/10 - Lloris had nothing to do all game. Like, literally nothing. Still managed to concede though.

Matt Doherty (RB) - 4/10 - Plovdiv occasionally caused him a few problems and going forward he wasted a few promising positions. All in all then, not great.

Eric Dier (CB) - 5/10 - A few wayward passes but he was not really troubled defensively.

Davinson Sanchez (CB) - 6/10 - Had to cover for Doherty on a few occasions. Looked the most comfortable out of the Spurs backline before being sacrificed for Lucas Moura.

Ben Davies (LB) - 4/10 - As he often does, Davies offered very little going forward. What is the point of playing a player like that against a team like Plovdiv?

2. Midfielder

Lo Celso got some minutes under his belt following his recovery from injury
Lo Celso got some minutes under his belt following his recovery from injury / Nikolay Doychinov/Getty Images

Moussa Sissoko (CM) - 4/10 - Huffed and puffed but did not blow the Plovdiv house down. Withdrawn on the hour mark after struggling to make much of an impact.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (CM) - 4/10 - Another nothing performance from the man touted to be the solution to Spurs' midfield woes.

Giovani Lo Celso (AM) - 5/10 - Good to see him back but looked well short of his best. A couple of nice touches here and there - nothing more.

3. Forwards

Kane converted a penalty in the second half
Kane converted a penalty in the second half / Nikolay Doychinov/Getty Images

Steven Bergwijn (RW) - 6/10 - Spurs' most dangerous attacker in the first half. He came closest to scoring and would have won his side a penalty if not for some bizarre officiating.

Harry Kane (ST) - 6/10 - Nothing fell for him. Missed chances, heavy first touches...it was sad to watch. Well off being the best striker in the world on current form. Did score his penalty though, as he always does.

Son Heung-min (LW) - 4/10 - Very poor execution from Son on Thursday night. Spurs will need much more from him over the course of the season.

4. Substitutes

Ndombele tucked the winner for Spurs
Ndombele tucked the winner for Spurs / Nikolay Doychinov/Getty Images

Tanguy Ndombele - 7/10

Lucas Moura - 7/10

Erik Lamela - 7/10