Report Spurs 3-0 IF Elfsborg

Looking for a quick start to settle any tension, we almost went ahead inside the first minute when quick feet from Moore saw him skip past a couple of challenges and deliver a ball into the box which just eluded Richarlison with Heung-Min Son’s shot blocked at the far post. We had plenty of the ball in the opening 15 minutes, forcing three corners with Micky van de Ven, making a welcome return from injury, almost getting on the end of the last of them.

The game was being played almost entirely in the Elfsborg half – attack against defence as they had 11 men behind the ball – and it was tough to break them down but we almost found a way through in the 23rd minute, Pedro Porro heading Son’s cross straight at Isak Pettersson in the visitors’ goal.

Our skipper was at the heart of most of our good work and created a great chance on 33 minutes, leaving Besfort Zeneli in his wake down the left and his cut-back found Pape Matar Sarr but Pettersson saved his shot with an outstretched leg. And the keeper was there again shortly after with a wonderful reaction save to prevent Moore’s shot from another low Son cross.

To highlight our dominance, we had 83 per cent possession at half-time and the only thing missing was a goal. We made three changes at the break to try to rectify that – Radu Dragusin, Dejan Kulusevski and Yves Bissouma on for van de Ven, Son and Rodrigo Bentancur – although it was the Swedish outfit with the first chance of the half, Zeneli’s shot on the turn flicking up off Dragusin and Jalal Abdullai, back to goal six yards out, put his overhead kick over the bar. We were soon back on the front foot though and when Porro delivered a cross into the box on 58 minutes, Lucas Bergvall met it well with a diving header only for Pettersson to save again.

Sadly though, we then lost Dragusin to injury just 20 minutes into the half, with Scarlett replacing him, Ben Davies moving to centre-back and Sarr in to left-back. And it was the young forward who was in the right spot to finally pierce the Elfsborg defence, heading home Kulusevski’s cross from eight yards out.

That goal basically secured a top eight finish and when Ajayi netted his fine goal on 84 minutes, that was job done. What a goal and what a moment it was, too! The 19-year-old picked up the ball out on the right, beat a couple of challenges and laid it in to Scarlett, he held it up and played it back to Ajayi who swept a left-footed shot into the bottom corner. It was a goal greeted with real joy not only by the fans, team-mates and coaching staff, but all the injured players on the bench went to congratulate him too! The evening was rounded off in great fashion as 17-year-old Moore got the goal his performance deserved, picking up the ball 40 yards out and drifting inside two Elfsborg defenders before firing past Pettersson. A great night in the end!