Juventus’s Higuaín and Dybala send Tottenham spiralling out of Europe

For Spurs, it will be of little solace that these are the kind of nights – with the volume turned up, the drama near unremitting and knockout football at its most attractive – that can make the Champions League feel so special.

This could have been one of the great nights for this club and, very nearly, it was. Instead, it became a harrowing reminder they have much to learn at this level and, having thrown it away, they might just have to accept the allegations of naivety that come their way.

Any analysis should take into account that, over two legs, Mauricio Pochettino’s side played some exhilarating attacking football against nine‑times finalists, scored three times against a side that had not conceded a Serie A goal since December and were still ploughing forward in those heart-stopping moments when Harry Kane’s 90th-minute header came off the turf, thudded against the post and was hacked off the goal-line.

Ultimately, though, the night swung on a spell in the second half when Gonzalo Higuaín and Paulo Dybala both scored within three minutes of one another to turn the game upside-down and maroon Spurs 4-3 behind on aggregate. And if there is one thing we know about the Italian champions, with all that rich experience in their backline, it is that they know how to defend a one‑goal lead.

Source: theguardian