Spurs’ hopes of qualifying for the Champions League were revived with a 2-1 comeback victory over relegation-threatened Luton thanks to a late goal by Heung-Min Son.
Ange Postecoglou’s team was three points behind fourth-place Aston Villa, who defeated Wolves later, despite the Spurs captain’s deflected goal in the 86th minute making him the fifth-highest goalscorer in club history.
Tahith Chong’s goal in the third minute put Luton, who now sit in the bottom three, in danger of a shocking outcome at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
However, Brennan Johnson, who was brought on at halftime, made an immediate impression by supplying the cross that Luton defender Issa Kabore diverted into his own net in the 51st minute.
After Alfie Doughty’s clearance from behind the line in the 78th minute, Johnson was rejected by one of the closest goal-line technology decisions in Premier League history, leaving Spurs looking to be stuck with a pointless draw.
However, Son’s late heroics saved a relieved Spurs, who recover from their heartbreaking loss at Fulham. Meanwhile, Luton slip to 18th position, trailing 17th-place Nottingham Forest on goal differential.
Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou in his post-match press conference:
“I thought the performance was good. I think we made the game pretty difficult for ourselves.
“We certainly had enough chances and we controlled the game pretty much from start to finish, but obviously when the scoreline is as it is, disappointing goal we conceded – that was the highly disappointing point of the day and I just thought it was preventable.
“But aside from that I thought the lads handled it really well in the second half. There was a bit of anxiety around the place, every game now for every club has that extra significance, but I thought the lads stayed really calm during that process, kept playing our football, kept probing and eventually got their rewards.”
Luton boss Rob Edwards in his post-match press conference:
“I feel sick right now. Tottenham are a brilliant team, a fantastic manager and really good players but to lose so late from our own attacking set-piece is difficult to take right now.
“I’ve got to give the players so much credit. To be competitive with the amount of players we’re missing, the lads deserve a lot of credit.
“The effort was there and played really well when we could. Tottenham are right up there with Liverpool for quick regains so I can’t fault the lads. We made some mistakes but the effort was amazing and to push them all the way.”
In a London derby, Tottenham plays West Ham on Tuesday. A week later, on Sunday, they welcome Nottingham Forest.
After playing Bournemouth at Kenilworth Road on Saturday, Luton will remain in north London as they go to Arsenal on Wednesday night.
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