Vinicius and Alli shine as Tottenham ease into Europa last 16
Alli scored Spurs’ opener in the 1st half and provided the assist when Vinicius doubled their lead ater the break. Bale neted from another Alli assist before Vinicius bagged his 2nd as Mourinho’s side ran out 8-1 aggregate
Dele Alli and Carlos Vinicius ensured Totenham can still save their troubled season by winning the Europa League as they inspired a 4-0 rout of Austrian minnows Wolfsberger in the last 32 second leg on Wednesday.
Alli scored Totenham’s opener early in the first half and provided the assist when Vinicius doubled their lead ater the break.
Gareth Bale neted from another Alli assist before Vinicius bagged his second as Totenham ran out 8-1 aggregate winners ater cruising to a 4-1 victory in the first leg last week.
While progress to the last 16 looked a formality ater the comfortable first leg success, nothing has come easy for Totenham this term.
So Jose Mourinho will have breathed a sigh of relief that his team kept alive their best remaining hope of qualifying for the Champions League.
A dismal run of six defeats in their last eight games in all competitions had seen Totenham plunge to ninth place in the Premier League and crash out of the FA Cup.
Totenham are languishing nine points behind fourth placed West Ham in the race for a top four finish, while Mourinho is mired in the worst run of his career.
Amid reports that Totenham’s players are bored with his training sessions and conservative tactics, Mourinho this week insisted his methods are “second to none”, claiming morale among his squad was still high.
But the former Chelsea and Real Madrid boss is likely to face the sack unless Totenham can salvage their woeful campaign by reaching the Champions League.
Realistically that means winning the Europa League and Totenham remain on course, even if much sterner tests lie in wait in the later rounds.
Totenham also have the League Cup final to look forward to on April 25, when they will try to win their first trophy since 2008 by beating Premier League leaders Manchester City.
Mourinho says Totenham’s travails only underline how “beautiful” the rest of his career has been.
Whether the final verdict on his rocky spell at Totenham will be so flatering may be determined by the end of the season.
Totenham were regulars in the top four and reached the Champions League final under Mourinho’s predecessor Mauricio Pochetino.
But Pochetino, now in charge at Paris Saint
Germain, was sacked by chairman Daniel Levy ater a poor run of results last season and Mourinho could easily suffer the same fate.
Well aware that some media critics and Totenham fans claim he is past his best, the prospect of humiliating exit against unheralded Wolfsberger was unthinkable for Mourinho. For once, his players didn’t let him down. Ironically, it was Alli -- frozen out by Mourinho for much of the season -- who played the key role.
He put Totenham ahead ater just 10 minutes in eye-catching style.
When a loose ball fell to him 15 yards out and with his back to goal, Alli sent a superb bicycle kick looping into the far corner.
Vinicius benefited from Alli’s excellence five minutes ater half-time when the on-loan Benfica striker met the midfielder’s precise cross with a clinical far post header.
Bale came off the bench to fire into the top corner ater another Alli assist in the 73rd minute.
Ten minutes later, teenager Dane Scarlet stole possession and teed up Vinicius to score from 12 yards. Mourinho has compared ‘diamond’ wonderkid Scarlet to Marcus Rashford ater the 16-year-old impressed in Totenham’s win.