Harry Kane came off the bench to score a 30-minute hat-trick as Tottenham eased the pressure on Nuno Espirito Santo with a 5-1 victory over NS Mura in the Europa Conference League.
After conceding three goals in three successive league defeats, Spurs could ill-afford another setback but required just eight minutes to put the game beyond the Slovenian champions.
Captain Dele Alli won and then converted penalty in the fourth minute before Giovani Lo Celso rifled in a brilliant strike four minutes later to leave Spurs with a handsome half-time lead.
A stunning volley from Ziga Kous – the goal of the game – halved the deficit for NS Mura but Kane come off the bench just before the hour and converted three close-range efforts in half an hour to seal the victory which lifts Spurs top of Group G, after Rennes win at Vitesse Arnhem.
To what extent Thursday’s morale-boosting victory heals the wounds from Sunday’s North London derby is up for debate, but, at the very least, Spurs have laid a foundation from which to tackle the tougher tests to come.
More to follow…
What’s next?
Tottenham host Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday at 2pm.
Read more here SkySports | News
