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| Hugo Lloris shocker gives knocks Tottenham back |
TOTTENHAM found out the hard way that even if you pick your first choice goalkeeper there are no guarantees he won’t throw one into the back of the net.
The north London club seemed to have produced a classic away European performance when two substitutes combined to embarrass France international goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.
Nabil Dirar’s cross was met firmly by Stephan El Shaarawy but the direction was still straight at Lloris.
It may not have been the sort of blunder that Arsenal no. 2 David Ospina was pilloried for on Tuesday night against Olympiakos, but nevertheless the ball hit the shins of the normally reliable stopper and seemed to pass through his body on its way into the back of the Tottenham net.
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| Stephan El Shaarawy scored Monaco's equaliser |
A point is no disaster away against the second-strongest team in their Europa League group but it could have been so much more on a night when one of their more frustrating performers of recent years continued to come of age before being replace just before the hour mark.
Plenty of players in the past have been bought from video, but few seem to have fitted into the mould of an acquisition from a TV shopping channel than Erik Lamela.
“Buy now and there is nothing to pay back for two years!” you can almost hear the host screaming. And such has been the case for 24 disappointing months at White Hart Lane.
Even the infamous “rabona” – a sign that Lamela is genuinely talented but has nothing at all in the way of a right foot – looked like that “unique free gift” to sweeten the deal.
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| Erik Lamela scored Tottenham's opener |
But now, at last, he is beginning to show some sort of value for money.
His simple tap-in after 35 minutes of a soporific encounter in the grand but near-empty confines of the Stade Louis II was not the most spectacular goal of his Tottenham career since his £30m arrival.
But it took his personal contribution to three goals and two assists in two games since manager Mauricio Pochettino laid down the edict that it was time to start producing the goods.
Nacer Chadli broke to create the initial chance and when Dele Alli’s shot finally ricocheted between goalkeeper and defender through to the Argentina international he was barely eight yards from goal with an empty net at his mercy.
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| Spurs players celebrate Lamela's opener |
Purists would say that Tottenham deserved the lead, perhaps, for their decision to take the competition seriously. Pochettino decided that a European tie was an appropriate occasion to play his first-choice goalkeeper, for example, and even the heavily-employed Harry Kane was given no respite in what was essentially Spurs’ first team.
Certainly the home side showed little inclination to put their own stamp on the game. Until the opening goal, the best chance had fallen to Chadli, who curled the ball over the bar in the 20th minute after Kane drew goalkeeper Danijel Subasic out of position.
Falling behind seemed to wake the French League side up, however, and on-loan Real Madrid star Fabio Coentrao really should have scored from his unmarked position eight yards from goal two minutes later rather than heading wide.
Toby Alderweireld was relieved to see his deflection fly a yard wide of goal as Monaco threatened just before half-time.
Tottenham should have killed off a game that was already showing few signs of life when Kane had a free header from only eight yards out in the second half, only for the once unstoppable Tottenham striker to head tamely downwards and into the arms of Subasic.
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| Mauricio Pochettino on the sidelines in Monaco |
And they were made to pay for their failure to give themselves a cushion when out of nowhere, nine minutes from time Monaco forced an equaliser into the net for a share of the spoils.
In Lloris’s defence, even after his blunder he managed a strong save from Dirar, which Danny Rose reacted quickly to turn away from danger.
The true measure of the success of Tottenham’s night will come on Sunday, however.
The real crime will be to drop Premier League points against Swansea having had their strongest team held to just a point here tonight.
MONACO (4-2-3-1): Subasic; Fabinho, Raggi, Carvalho (Dirar 76), Coentrao; Moutinho, Toulalan; A Traore, Lemar (El Shaarawy 60), Silva; L Traore (Carrillo 68). Goal: El Shaarawy 81.
TOTTENHAM (4-2-3-1): Lloris; Trippier, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Rose; Alli, Dier; Chadli (Townsend 70), Eriksen (Carroll 90), Lamela (Njie 65); Kane. Goal: Lamela 35.
REFEREE: A Dias (Portugal)
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