Son Heung-min gives Lucas Bergvall a hand as the Tottenham Hotspur youngster is substituted against Qarabag(Image: (Photo by Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images))

Son Heung-min shows true Tottenham colours as Guglielmo Vicario predicts future in Europa League

Spurs were 3-0 winners over Qarabag in their first Europa League match of the 2024/25 season

by · football.london

Spurs were involved in a thrilling clash at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Thursday night as their Europa League campaign got under way with a bang.

There were only seven minutes on the clock when the home side were reduced to ten men - Radu Dragusin hauling down Juninho when the Qarabag forward was clean through. Moments later the ten men were 1-0 up, thanks to Brennan Johnson.

And despite Qarabag having a number of good chances - one from the penalty spot - Spurs were clinical with theirs, scoring a second and third in the second half through Pape Matar Sarr and Dominic Solanke.

football.london kept a close eye on things and here are a few things we spotted during the match that you might have missed...

Postecoglou reaction

Ange Postecoglou's reaction to Radu Dragusin's red card summed it all up. As the camera went on to the Australian, after Dragusin had seen red for denying Juninho a goalscoring opportunity, Postecoglou shook his head.

Whether he was upset with the decision of the referee, or the situation his player put himself and his team in, was unclear at the time. Postecoglou shook his head and turned away from the pitch.

He was then seen putting his hand out for Dragusin to shake, but seven minutes into the match, the Spurs boss will have been apoplectic that the Romanian got himself in that position by mis-controlling the ball in the middle of the pitch.

Dragusin left his teammates with a huge job to do, when perhaps he would have been better letting the Qarabag man go through and have a shot.

READ MORE: Tottenham vs Qarabag highlights - Dragusin sent off but Johnson, Sarr and Solanke score in win

READ MORE: Why Radu Dragusin was sent off for Tottenham vs Qarabag as double jeopardy rule explained

Bergvall hides

One player a number of Tottenham fans were looking forward to seeing on the night was Lucas Bergvall. The £8.5million signing from Djurgarden started the Carabao Cup clash with Coventry and this was his second chance to really show what he could do.

But he only managed to get ten minutes on the pitch. That was because of Dragusin's red card in the seventh minute.

Ange Postecoglou had to sacrifice someone in order to get a fourth defender on the pitch and Bergvall was the unlucky one. And he did not want to be seen after going off.

Taking his place on the substitutes' bench, Bergvall could be seen with a big coat on with his hood up and the coat zipped up over his mouth and nose, with only his eyes visible. He will have been heartbroken.

Captain's moment

Son Heung-min is well loved by the Tottenham Hotspur supporters and the Spurs players alike. He is the captain, the leader, the talisman.

And he showed it in one important but fleeting moment in the first half. As we've mentioned above, Bergvall was so unfortunate to be the one taken off when Spurs were reduced to ten men early on in the match.

The teenager will get other chances to shine, but he was disconsolate as he trudged off the pitch. Son as not going to let him just walk off alone though. The Spurs skipper made sure he went over to the 18-year-old and had a word with him as he shook his hand, as if to say 'your time will come'.

Vicario premonition

Guglielmo Vicario knew exactly what was going to happen when Qarabag were awarded a penalty. Toral Bayramov was the man to step up after Yves Bissouma was harshly adjudged to have brought down Yassine Benzia.

There was a bit of a wait as VAR checked that Bissouma did slightly clip Benzia before winning the ball. Vicario was crouched down right in front of Bayramov before he placed the ball on the spot.

As the Spurs keeper walked back towards his goal, he slapped the crossbar with his hands - as goalkeepers often do to be fair - to psych himself up. And Bayramov stepped up and smashed the spot-kick off the bar where Vicario had just touched it and high over the top.

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