Tottenham put themselves in a strong position to finish in the top eight of the Europa League and qualify directly for the last 16 by beating Hoffenheim 3–2.
Competition events
Spurs were up and running in Germany within four minutes, with James Maddison latching on to Pedro Porro's long pass and firing the ball into the roof of the net.
Maddison also played a key role in the second inning. He stole possession in the center of the pitch and released Son, whose deflected effort ended up in the back of the net.
Hoffenheim were awarded a penalty shortly after the hour mark, but the decision was overturned by a VAR review just as it was ready to be taken.
However, they pulled one back midway through the half when Anton Stach was on the end of a smart move to divert it past goalkeeper Brandon Austin.
A nervous period ensued for the visitors before skipper Son got his say again, drilling a left-footed effort from inside the area.
That wasn't the end of the score. David Mokwa pulled one more goal back for Hoffenheim with two minutes on the clock, but his team could not force the equalizer.
The result leaves the German team in 28th place with a play-off place unlikely, while Spurs are fourth and can seal qualification when they host IF Elfsborg next Thursday.
Victory in Hoffenheim! pic.twitter.com/bTrm9Bmi10
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) January 23, 2025
Data Debrief: Son turns back the years
Son has not had the impact he would have liked at Tottenham this season. He only scored eight goals ahead of tonight's match but looked much more like his former self with two signature goals.
The first, which ran onto Maddison's pass and finished, owed much to a lucky deflection, but the second was an authoritative finish from an angle in the penalty area.
The South Korean had three shots over the course of the match, with none of his teammates managing more than one, and he also led his side in touches inside the penalty area (nine).
With a passing accuracy of 96.7% to his name, the highest of any starter on the pitch, this was much more similar to the South Korean's.
Setups
Hoffenheim XI: Oliver Baumann, Kramaric, Kaderábek, Akpoguma, Stanley Nsoki, Anton Stach, Adam Hlozek, Finn Becker, David Jurásek, Tom Bischof, Max Moerstedt
Subs: Valentin Gendrey, Luca Philipp, Robin Hranac, Arthur Chaves, T. Philipp, L. Đurić, David Mokwa, Simon Kalambayi, Florian Micheler, Hennes Behrens, Luca Erlein
Tottenham XI: Son, Ben Davies, Maddison, Bentancur, Richarlison, Austin, Kulusevski, Porro, Dragusin, Gray, Bergvall
Subs: Fraser Forster, Whiteman, Dante Cassanova, Lankshear, Moore, Callum Olusesi, Damola Ajayi, Malachi Hardy
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