Lucas Moura scores first hat-trick since moving to Europe in 2013 as Spurs gamble pays off
Saturday 13 April 2019 17:26, UK
Lucas Moura scored the first hat-trick at Tottenham's new stadium as Spurs reclaimed third spot in the Premier League for 24 hours at least with a comprehensive 4-0 victory over Huddersfield.
With Harry Kane injured and Heung-Min Son rested ahead of Wednesday's Champions League clash with Manchester City, Mauricio Pochettino made seven changes, challenging his fringe players to maintain Spurs' top-four challenge.
And Moura delivered, scoring his first in devastating fashion after Victor Wanyama's opener, before completing his treble with clincal strikes in the final three minutes.
Relegated Huddersfield mounted a rally before Moura's late double as Juninho Bacuna's free-kick was tipped onto the crossbar by Hugo Lloris, but Spurs' victory was never in doubt as they moved a point and place above Chelsea ahead of the Blues' trip to Liverpool on Super Sunday.
An unnecessary sense of anxiety was generated inside Spurs' new stadium as they failed to convert their early dominance into goals - but two strikes in 144 seconds lifted the mood in an instant.
Fernando Llorente had a hand in the opener, occupying two Huddersfield defenders and flicking the ball into the path of Wanyama, who showed great footwork to round Ben Hamer and convert his first goal of the season.
One quickly became two as Moussa Sissoko burst forward into space vacated by the stretched Huddersfield defence, chipped the ball through to Moura and the Brazilian fired Spurs' second with a devastating finish.
Llorente glanced a header inches wide on 39 minutes and came even closer to adding a third in the early stages of the second half when he spun in behind the Huddersfield defence, plucked Juan Foyth's long ball and sent a volley crashing against the crossbar.
Llorente saw another header drift wide on 65 minutes before Karlan Grant, after being released in behind the Spurs defence, failed to find a way past Lloris with Huddersfield's first chance of the game.
Llorente was denied from getting in on the act by a brilliantly-timed block from Terence Kongolo on 71 minutes before Steve Mounie headed wide after being left unmarked in the Spurs area.
Bacuna looked to have pulled one back 10 minutes from time with a curling free-kick but Spurs captain Lloris diverted it onto the woodwork, laying the foundations for Moura to have the final word.
The Brazilian stroked home his second on the counter after Christian Eriksen found him in space on the edge of the area on 87 minutes, and he saved the best until last, thundering his third in stoppage-time as Spurs issued a statement of intent ahead of their two trips to Manchester.
Mauricio Pochettino: "Rather than rest players, it was about providing the team with fresh legs because the effort was big against City. Everyone will have an opinion but after the game we can say it was a right decision."
Jan Siewert: "In the end it was hard for us to take that we conceded another two goals. The result does not reflect it. We had our chances and should have scored twice, this makes me proud, but at the end of the day I do not like the result."
Ahead of Spurs crucial Champions League quarter-final second leg on Wednesday against Man City, Pochettino gave an update on both Harry Winks and Dele Alli.
On Harry Winks: "It was the same as the past. He was training yesterday and in the middle of training he started to feel [his groin]. It's a similar situation. We are optimistic.
On Dele Alli: "We'll see. He's doing some training sessions with the protection. He needs to feel comfortable. It all depends on the time."
Sky Sports' Jamie Redknapp says the atmosphere at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium has lifted the club, and praised a perfect performance on Saturday with more huge games to come...
"Pochettino will be delighted. It couldn't have gone any better. However you look at it, Spurs were having a difficult spell, and now they've come here, the whole place is lifted.
"You can feel it, there's a special atmosphere already and the fans feel happy. Sometimes when you move to a new stadium it doesn't feel completely right, but the atmosphere feels right here and it feels like the old White Hart Lane. The way they've done the stadium is spot on.
"It was a perfect performance in many ways, explosive in the right times, and they needed Moura to make an impact like he did. It's a lovely [selection] problem, a problem you want."
There were stand-out performances all over the pitch from a Spurs perspective, but this day belonged to Lucas Moura. His finishes got better and better each time he found the back of the net, capping a fine Spurs performance with his first hat-trick in European football.
Tottenham travel to Manchester City on Wednesday for their Champions League quarter-final second leg (8pm BST), before returning to the Etihad in the Premier League on Saturday, live on Sky Sports from 11.30am; kick-off 12.30pm.
Huddersfield, meanwhile, host Watford on Saturday (3pm) in their penultimate home match before returning to the Championship.
