Spurs are wasteful but still cruise to victory while Leicester are woeful and pay the price as the Champions League shuts up shop for the calendar year. Here’s how the last round of group matches played out.
Tottenham 3 CSKA Moscow 1
Mauricio Pochettino spent much of his pre-match time talking up the delights of the Europa League and promptly picked a strong Spurs side in case anyone doubted his sincerity.
He made just one change from the team that spanked Swansea City, Harry Winks (4.5) coming in for Mousa Dembele (5.4), and a generally one-sided affair ensued.
In-form trio Christian Eriksen (8.3), Harry Kane (11.1) and Dele Alli (8.1) were at the heart of the win.
The latter two claimed a goal apiece and both fired seven attempts, Kane scoring for the sixth time in five matches since returning from injury.
The influential Eriksen set up Alli’s first half equaliser and supplied eight scoring chances, while Danny Rose (5.9) also provided an assist as Spurs wound up winning with ease. They still managed to miss a host of opportunities to seal the deal before CSKA keeper Igor Akinfeev contrived to save an Alli header only to then kick the ball into his own net.
The return of centre half Toby Alderweireld (6.3), a second half substitution, lightened the mood further.
The Belgian has remained in 9.9% of Fantasy Premier League squads despite missing six Gameweeks through injury. His recovery looks to be beautifully timed – Spurs will play three times in a week before Christmas, have ten days off and then play three more times in a week from December 28.
That ridiculously lop-sided schedule is bookended by fixtures away at Manchester United and home to Chelsea, and Alderweireld will surely play a major part in much of it.
A disappointing Champions League campaign now begets a 2017 Europa League tilt, with Spurs involved in both legs of the Round of 32 between Gameweeks 25 (away at Liverpool) and 26 (at home to Stoke) in mid to late February.
Tottenham Hotspur XI: Lloris, Walker, Dier, Vertonghen, Rose, Son (Nkoudou 62), Wanyama (Alderweireld 68), Winks, Eriksen, Alli, Kane (Onomah 83).
Subs not used: Vorm, Sissoko, Dembele, Wimmer.
FC Porto 5 Leicester City 0
Leicester City finally got round to bringing their poor domestic form onto the European stage on a night when their fringe players failed to take a rare first-team opportunity.
With the group already won, Claudio Ranieri was more than justified in making ten changes to the team that lost to Sunderland, with skipper Wes Morgan (4.9) the only survivor.
But he would have hoped for a lot more than the abject display his squad players then produced.
The scoreline didn’t flatter Porto – the Foxes managed precisely zero shots on target all night.
Last season’s revelations Jamie Vardy (9.6) and Riyad Mahrez (9.0) didn’t even travel and Ranieri gave Nampalys Mendy (4.4) his first start since August in a midfield also containing Danny Drinkwater (5.3), who is currently serving a domestic ban.
To cap a desperate night, the England midfielder then limped off with a knee injury in the second half, although Ranieri played down the issue post-match.
“Drinkwater’s injury doesn’t look serious. He is suspended for Saturday anyway, but he should be okay.”
The normally cheery coach was sombre in his appraisal of the debacle, ostensibly blaming himself, although not completely.
“I have no regrets because I wanted to give an opportunity to all my players. If I needed to win or draw, I would bring all my first team to fight, but when you know there is another difficult match on Saturday against Man City and you are top of the group, why not give a chance to players who say ‘why I don’t play? We are losing in the Premier League, give me a chance’. For this reason, I give me a chance to them. That’s it. Then, the result is my fault but they missed a great chance.”
Once that Manchester City match is out of the way, the Foxes have a good run of fixtures – Everton and West Ham at home, Bournemouth, Stoke and Middlesbrough away – through to early January.
The transfer window will be open again by then and there is currently little in Leicester’s squad to warrant Fantasy investment.
Leiecester City XI: Hamer; Hernandez, Wasilewski, Morgan, Chilwell, Gray, Mendy, Drinkwater (Barnes 76), Schlupp Albrighton (45), Okazaki, Musa Ulloa (45).
Subs not used: Amartey, Simpson, Zieler, Fuchs.
