Real Madrid 0 Tottenham 1: Harry Kane seals Audi Cup win for Spurs in Munich
In Pictures | Real Madrid vs Tottenham | 30/07/2019
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Harry Kane scored the only goal as Tottenham overcame Real Madrid 1-0 at the Allianz Arena in Munich.
The 26-year-old's calm finish after 22 minutes was the difference as Mauricio Pochettino's men earned a deserved victory after an impressive performance.
Both managers fielded strong sides for the game, with Christian Eriksen and Danny Rose both starting despite speculation linking them with moves away from Tottenham.
Tottenham looked sharp in the early stages, moving the ball quickly and directly through the middle.
They nearly went in front when Raphael Varane was spared his blushes by his goalkeeper after nearly diverting Danny Rose's cross into his own goal.
Seconds later, Navas was called into action again to deny Erik Lamela, coming out bravely to block the Argentine's effort.
But the Costa Rican was powerless to prevent Spurs from taking a deserved lead just three minutes later.
A wayward pass from Eden Hazard sent Marcelo scurrying towards the touchline. The Brazilian, in his attempts to keep the ball in, lofted it back towards his goal and he could only watch as Harry Kane intercepted the pass and slotted beyond Navas.
It was another horrible and needless mistake at the back from Zinedine Zidane's side as they showed their defensive vulnerability again.
Kane should have doubled his and Tottenham's tally on the half-hour mark after a lovely floated pass from Lamela, but the England striker was denied by Navas.
The second half died down after various substitutions from both sides but Dele Alli, on at the interval, brought things back to life. The midfielder ran in behind Sergio Ramos after a sublime ball over the top from Lucas Moura but volleyed straight at Navas.
The 23-year-old then had an opportunity to score again with a pinpoint diagonal from Kyle Walker-Peters but fluffed his lines in front of goal.
Heung-min Son nearly added a second with a curling effort from the edge of the box only to be denied by a fine flying save from Navas.
Real thought they had grabbed an unlikely equaliser after teenager Rodrygo volleyed past Hugo Lloris, but the flag went up against the young Brazilian for offside.
Seventeen-year-old Troy Parrott nearly scored a memorable goal in the closing moments but the Irish starlet was unfortunate to see his low effort strike the post, as Spurs savoured an impressive all-round performance.
Follow all the reaction with Standard Sport in Munich.
Live Updates
While the Audi Cup may only be a pre-season tournament, both sides need a statement win against a glamorous opponent today.
Spurs lost their last game 2-1 against Manchester United, and were played off the park at times by a Red Devils side who have been tipped to struggle for the coming campaign.
As for Real, it doesn't get much worse than a 7-3 defeat against fierce city rivals Atletico, who inflicted humiliation on Zinedine Zidane's men by going 5-0 up by half-time. It could have been worse, but Real nabbed two late goals after plenty of subs to massage the scoreline - but conceding seven to a team managed by Diego Simeone is an alarm bell as the season approaches.
Tottenham team news
Serge Aurier, Eric Dier, Ben Davies and Cameron Carter-Vickers all remain out of action, while Victor Wanyama has remained at Hotspur Way after suffering irritation in his knee.
Audi Cup squad in full: Toby Alderweireld, Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen, Juan Foyth, Paulo Gazzaniga, Anthony Georgiou, Harry Kane, Erik Lamela, Hugo Lloris, George Marsh, Lucas Moura, Tanguy Ndombele, Georges-Kevin Nkoudou,Troy Parrott, Jack Roles,Danny Rose, Davinson Sanchez, Moussa Sissoko, Oliver Skipp, Heung-Min Son, Japhet Tanganga, Jan Vertonghen, Kyle Walker-Peters, Harvey White, Harry Winks, Alfie Whiteman
Serge Aurier, Eric Dier, Ben Davies and Cameron Carter-Vickers all remain out of action, while Victor Wanyama has remained at Hotspur Way after suffering irritation in his knee.
Audi Cup squad in full: Toby Alderweireld, Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen, Juan Foyth, Paulo Gazzaniga, Anthony Georgiou, Harry Kane, Erik Lamela, Hugo Lloris, George Marsh, Lucas Moura, Tanguy Ndombele, Georges-Kevin Nkoudou,Troy Parrott, Jack Roles,Danny Rose, Davinson Sanchez, Moussa Sissoko, Oliver Skipp, Heung-Min Son, Japhet Tanganga, Jan Vertonghen, Kyle Walker-Peters, Harvey White, Harry Winks, Alfie Whiteman
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Zidane 'hurt' by Atletico rout
Zinedine Zidane admitted he was left "hurt" by Real's embarrassing 7-3 defeat to Atletico.
Former Chelsea striker Diego Costa scored four goals and was sent off as Real were embarrassed in New Jersey.
Joao Felix, a big-money summer signing from Benfica, scored his first Atletico goal before Real made a belated comeback from 6-0 down.
"I'm not concerned, but I'm hurt," Zidane afterwards. "You don't play to lose. But we can't be looking backwards.
"It was a bad game and now we have to focus on what went wrong, so we can try and make sure it doesn't happen again in the next match.
"We don't need to dwell on it, this is a pre-season game. They were better in every respect and that's all there is to it."
What is happening with Gareth Bale?
That's the question, isn't it? It depends on who you ask, really, but Ben Hayward reports that Bale believes Real president Florentino Perez pulled the plug on his lucrative move to China over concerns regarding Zidane.
"Bale now fears he will be made to remain at Real and frozen out as long as Zidane is in charge — but the Welshman has not given up hope of outlasting the Frenchman.
"Bale is furious at Real’s decision to torpedo his £1million-a-week transfer to Jiangsu Suning on a three-year deal and he was too upset to travel to Munich for Tuesday’s Audi Cup match against his former club Tottenham.
"The Madrid media claim Bale’s family persuaded him against the move, while Perez was reportedly unhappy at not receiving a transfer fee for the 30-year-old, who cost a world-record £86million in 2013.
"However, sources in Bale’s camp believe Perez had 11th-hour concerns about losing Bale – and backing Zidane."
That's the question, isn't it? It depends on who you ask, really, but Ben Hayward reports that Bale believes Real president Florentino Perez pulled the plug on his lucrative move to China over concerns regarding Zidane.
"Bale now fears he will be made to remain at Real and frozen out as long as Zidane is in charge — but the Welshman has not given up hope of outlasting the Frenchman.
"Bale is furious at Real’s decision to torpedo his £1million-a-week transfer to Jiangsu Suning on a three-year deal and he was too upset to travel to Munich for Tuesday’s Audi Cup match against his former club Tottenham.
"The Madrid media claim Bale’s family persuaded him against the move, while Perez was reportedly unhappy at not receiving a transfer fee for the 30-year-old, who cost a world-record £86million in 2013.
"However, sources in Bale’s camp believe Perez had 11th-hour concerns about losing Bale – and backing Zidane."
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Danny Rose was included in Tottenham's squad for the Audi Cup match against Real Madrid after missing the pre-season tour of China.
But the 28-year-old's future with the north London club remains uncertain as he ponders a new challenge away from north London.
Rose is the longest-serving member in the squad after arriving from Leeds United in 2007 but speculation has linked with the left-back with a move abroad as he looks for a new challenge.
As of yet, a move has failed to materialise despite reported interest from Juventus and PSG. But with Alex Georgiou set to start against the Spanish side, the England defender will need to make a decision soon before he finds himself surplus to requirements.
Bale in power struggle with Zidane
Gareth Bale believes Real Madrid president Florentino Perez pulled the plug on his move to China over concerns about the long-term future of head coach Zinedine Zidane.
Bale is furious at Real’s decision to torpedo his £1million-a-week transfer to Jiangsu Suning on a three-year deal and he was too upset to travel to Munich for Tuesday’s Audi Cup match against his former club Tottenham.
The Madrid media claim Bale’s family persuaded him against the move, while Perez was reportedly unhappy at not receiving a transfer fee for the 30-year-old, who cost a world-record £86million in 2013.
However, sources in Bale’s camp believe Perez had 11th-hour concerns about losing Bale – and backing Zidane.
Zidane has made it clear that he wants Bale to leave the club as soon as possible. But the Welshman has has not given up hope of winning the power struggle with his manager if he stays.
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More than a friendly
You don't know need to lecture Zinedine Zidane about pressure. A World Cup winner as a player, a three-time Champions League-winning coach; he knows what it takes to succeed in this world.
And yet, even the Frenchman must be wondering if he made the right move in coming back to the Santiago Bernabeu, having resigned from his position at the end of the 2017-18 season.
This time around, there's no Cristiano Ronaldo, who is now at Juventus. Without the Portuguese star, Real have struggled for goals and simultaneously looked extremely vulnerable in defence.
Even the arrivals of Luka Jovic and Eden Hazard haven't come close to wiping the slate clean with the Madridistas, who backed Zidane to be sacked by Christmas.
Today's clash with Tottenham may just be an exhbition match on paper, but after the 7-3 defeat to Atletico Madrid last week, it's clear Zidane and Real Madrid could do with a morale-boosting victory.
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Eriksen, Rose both start as Pochettino names strong side
Christian Eriksen is backing in the Tottenham XI after starting the 2-1 defeat to Manchester United on the bench.
The Dane has been linked with a move to tonight's opponents Real Madrid but the 28-year-old will be given a chance to prove himself to manager Mauricio Pochettino.
Danny Rose, who is on the transfer list, is also handed a surprise start having missed the tour of China.
Record signing Tanguy Ndombele continues in midfield with Harry Winks while Dele Alli and Troy Parrott make way for Heung-min Son and Erik Lamela.
Interestingly, Juan Foyth starts at right-back ahead of Kyle Walker-Peters, which many believe is where he will play for Spurs this season after Kieran Trippier's departure.
Now, about that Real Madrid team...
While many would assume Thibaut Courtois has been dropped after conceding five of the seven goals against his former club Atletico Madrid, that's not the case.
The Belgian suffered a grade 2 sprain on his left ankle in training and is a doubt for Real's opening game of the Liga campaign, so Keylor Navas starts in goal with young Ukrainian stopper Andriy Lunin on the bench.
There's also a start for 18-year-old starlet Rodrygo. The Brazilian showed exactly what he's capable of against Bayern Munich with a stunning free-kick and has been rewarded with a start today.
And as you will know already, Gareth Bale has not travelled after the breakdown of his move to Jiangsu Suning.
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Despite watching his young side go down 2-1 to rivals Manchester United, Mauricio Pochettino will be mostly pleased with how pre-season has gone.
There were fears Toby Alderweireld would have headed for the exit by now, while Christian Eriksen and Danny Rose could quite easily follow him. But the Argentine has kept his squad together and has even added to it with the signing of Tanguy Ndombele.
On the pitch, the 3-2 victory over Juventus would have been particularly pleasing - and not just because Harry Kane scored the winner from the halfway line in stoppage time.
Against a Real Madrid side that will be hurting after the heavy 7-3 defeat to rivals Atletico, it should prove to be a difficult test ahead of their Premier League opener in 11 days' time.
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