Tottenham 2-1 Luton Town: Spurs come from behind to keep Hatters in the drop zone

Tahith Chong’s early opener in North London proved not enough for Luton Town, as Tottenham Hotspur came from behind to clinch a 2-1 victory on Saturday afternoon.

Ange Postecoglou’s men found themselves trailing after just three minutes at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Issa Kaboré’s own goal at the start of the second half gave Spurs belief, with their frustrating search for the winning goal coming to a head in the 86th minute as Son Heung-min saw his deflected strike squeeze past Thomas Kaminski.

Luton Town remain inside the relegation zone due to their goal difference.

As it happened

Tottenham’s targets have shifted drastically throughout the course of the 2023/24 season. Those that thought Spurs would be challenging for silverware in Ange Postecoglou’s first season were admittedly overly optimistic – but as the end of the season nears, the Lilywhites find themselves in a fierce battle to secure UEFA Champions League football.

Qualification for Europe’s elite competition was by no means a certainty for Spurs though, and when Tahith Chong completed a well-worked move by Luton Town after just a matter of minutes in N17, it looked to be the start of an all-too-familiar tale for Tottenham.

Ange Postecoglou’s men trailed by that single goal as they headed down the tunnel for a much-needed reprieve, but found themselves back on level pegging by the 51st minute after Issa Kaboré bundled a Brennan Johnson cross into his own net.

It sparked a relentless wave of chances for the Lilywhites, and Johnson was remarkably unfortunate not to fire his side into the lead – rolling an effort across the goal line before it was hooked away by Alfie Doughty.

Ultimately, Spurs were reliant on Son Heung-min. The South Korean has become something of an inevitable presence since Harry Kane’s departure, and his 15th goal of the season took an agonising deflection off Daiki Hashioka as he condemned the Hatters to another defeat.

The lineups

TOT: Vicario; Udogie, Dragusin, Romero, Porro; Bissouma, Sarr; Werner, Maddison, Kulusevski; Son

LUT: Kaminski; Doughty, Mengi, Burke, Kaboré; Mpanzu, Barkley, Berry; Chong, Morris, Townsend