Spurs snatch 2-1 win at Marseille to reach CL last 16

Agency :
Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte usually patrols his technical area kicking every ball, barking out instructions and gesticulating at his players.
On Tuesday, the Italian was forced to endure a tortuous night sitting in the stands at the Stade Velodrome as his team secured a 2-1 win that sent them into the Champions League (CL) last 16 as Group D winners.
Conte was banished after his red card at the end of his side’s 1-1 draw with Sporting Lisbon on Oct 26.
Perhaps it was better he was not close to the pitch in the first 45 minutes in Marseille as his players, who needed only to avoid defeat to go through to the next stage, looked in danger of capitulation in the face of a siege.
Throughout their Champions League campaign, and also in many Premier League games this season, Tottenham have been desperately slow starters.
It was the same again on Tuesday. Yet, as against Sporting and in the home clash with Marseille, they were vastly improved, almost unrecognisable, after the half-time interval.
Conte’s assistant Cristian Stellini struggled to explain what had happened in the first half but Clement Lenglet, whose 54th-minute equaliser turned the match, offered a theory.
“We didn’t play well in the first half maybe because we didn’t know if we had to attack or defend and maybe it was not good to play this type of first half,” he said.
Stellini said Marseille had controlled the game in the first half but “something changed” at half-time.
“We spoke a lot in the dressing room about the energy we need in the second half, about how we need to press them,” he said.
“In the first half we never did that. In the second, this aspect changed and we played a fantastic second half. We need to try to play all 90 minutes at the same level. This is an important lesson for the future.”