Glenn Hoddle: Antonio Conte ‘won’t be happy’ by the finish to Spurs’ win over Eintracht Frankfurt

Glenn Hoddle has said he thinks Antonio Conte will be less than impressed by the sloppy way Tottenham’s Champions League win over Eintracht Frankfurt has ended.

While Spurs dominated much of their home game on Wednesday and were 3-1 until the final stage, the visitors created tension at the finish when Faride Alidou scored a header to narrow the deficit by three minutes.

Things could have been worse for Tottenham, as ten-man Frankfurt had additional chances to even the game despite the earlier dismissal of centre-back Tuta for two yellow cards. It was a save by goalkeeper Hugo Lloris that kept the Spurs ahead.

After the game, Conte went straight into the tunnel instead of enjoying the result on the pitch with his players and the fans at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Glenn Hoddle said he thinks the Tottenham boss won’t be happy with the final stages of the win

Hoddle told BT Sport: “He won’t be happy. Normally he celebrates with the team and the audience.

“He knows they’re out. You don’t do that in professional football, in the Champions League, against ten men.

“They made it to five subs, so they lost the rhythm of the game. It was a strange game in the second half. They had complete control over the game.

“They’re on the edge of their seats, last minute. We could have scored a goal, Lloris had to save.’

Peter Crouch said the late goal for the Germans was derived from strong Spurs performance

Fellow pundit Peter Crouch said the late collapse pushed focus away from the positives of the Spurs win.

The 41-year-old said: ‘We were talking about’ [Harry] Kane and [Heung-min] Son’s achievements. At 3-1 it was so comfortable it was a matter of how much.

“They took their foot off the gas a little bit. The substitutions didn’t help, it was a bit nervous towards the end.

“Too bad, it was such a good performance for 60, 70 minutes.”

Owen Hargreaves said that while a strong finish was preferred, it didn’t take the shine off the result

But Owen Hargreaves, the third of BT’s expert panel for the match, said the late result did not take away the shine from Spurs’ victory, which put them at the top of their Champions League group.

Hargreaves said: “You wish the finish was a little better. If you have Kane and Son on the team, they give you every chance.

“They’re at the top, that’s a tricky group. They’re all pretty tough teams. We saw that tonight with Frankfurt. Even with ten men they could try. With those players at the top, if they take their chances, they end up at the top.’

Later in the conversation, the former Bayern Munich man said: “They had ten men. You think the games out of sight. But it’s a great team, they’ll try. Even though they are a man down, they kept pumping players forward. They had seven men in the box. You just get a little nervous.’

Hoddle said the new rule of five substitutes negatively alters winning dynamics

Hoddle felt that Spurs have now fallen into a common pitfall for teams – how to keep the positive momentum, when a new rule can change almost half of your starting 11.

The former Spurs man said: ‘In the modern game you have five substitutions these days. Team dynamics change so much, especially when you’re winning.

‘If you lose, that’s no problem, you have nothing to lose, put people in the box. Spurs lost the rhythm of the game. Maybe they’re thinking about Saturday, Everton at home – finish this one! The Champions League is the Champions League.’

The Spurs could qualify for the knockout stage of the Champions League if they win their next home game against Sporting Lisbon in two weeks.

Now the North London side are turning their attention back to the Premier League, where they face Everton on Saturday for the games against Manchester United and Newcastle United before the Champions League return.