Tottenham 3 Real Madrid 1: Spurs now one of Europe’s best, says Pochettino

Tottenham 3 Real Madrid 1

It will go down as one of the great matches in Tottenham’s history, the evening they humbled Real Madrid by beating the reigning European champions with a blend of discipline and dynamism.

“We now belong not only with the best in England, but in Europe,” declared Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino following his side’s 3-1 victory.

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“We are starting to believe in our potential and qualities. This sort of win has consequences in terms of making us more visible. It’s something that everyone around Europe will have seen.”

It was Real’s first loss in the Champions League group stage since their 2-1 defeat to Borussia Dortmund in October 2012, and their heaviest defeat group stage defeat in nine years.

Those two stats underline the significance of Tottenham’s achievement, but as Pochettino pointed out, there is more work to be done.

“What we have to do is move to the next level and that is winning things,” he said. “We’re pleased, but it will mean nothing if we have not won anything.”

Real started the brighter of the two at a buzzing Wembley Stadium, before Tottenham then took the lead at 27 minutes, when Dele Alli poked home Kieran Trippier’s cross from the right.

The England midfielder - who should have scored minutes earlier but failed to latch onto a similar ball from the impressive Trippier - doubled Spurs’ advantage early in the second half with a shot that was helped into the net with the pass that allowed the Dane to make it 3-0 on 65 minutes. Although Cristiano Ronaldo got a goal back for Real with ten minutes left, the visitors were comprehensively outplayed.

“We came up against the superior team,” said Real coach Zinedine Zidane. “They were better in every aspect.”

The defeat against Tottenham, coupled with Saturday’s La Liga loss to Girona, spells something of a mini-crisis for Real, but Zidane called for the club to keep a cool head.

“We cannot be happy, or in high spirits,” he said. “This is a bad moment, but we must keep our heads up always, knowing football is like this… you have to accept sometimes things aren’t going to go your way.

“I’m not going to say things are going great in the dressing room… but at the same time we played against a very good opponent. We have the rest of the season to turn it around.”

Real are still all but guaranteed qualification for the last 16 after Borussia Dortmund’s shocking Champions League campaign continued with their 1-1 draw at home to Apoel Nicosia, a result that leaves the Germans on just two points, five shy of their Spanish rivals.

As for Spurs, last night’s win secures their passage into the knockout stage for the first time since 2011, an achievement that will boost the club’s revenue and emphasises their arrival among the European elite.

“We are able to compete with teams now on a physical and mental level,” said Pochettino. “Our goals are to win the big competitions. Whether we get there this year or not, we’re certainly moving in the right direction.”

Last night’s Champions League results

Group E

• Liverpool 3 NK Maribor 0
• Sevilla 2 Spartak Moscow 1

Group F

• Napoli 2 Manchester City 4
• Shakhtar Donetsk 3 Feyenoord 1

Group G

• Besiktas 1 Monaco 1
• FC Porto 3 RB Leipzig 1

Group H

• Borussia Dortmund 1 Apoel Nicosia 1
• Tottenham Hotspur 3 Real Madrid 1