Spurs top group with Son's brace, eye last-16 spot

LONDON - Antonio Conte said Tottenham had avoided a "disaster" after Son Heung-min struck twice in a 3-2 win over Eintracht Frankfurt that bolstered their bid to reach the Champions League's last 16.

The hosts fell behind to Daichi Kamada's early goal at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Wednesday. But Son equalised with a composed finish after being sent through by Harry Kane.

It was the 50th time in all competitions the pair had combined to produce a Spurs goal.

Kane then converted a penalty for his first Champions League goal this season. Son's blistering volley put the home side in complete control towards the end of a vibrant first-half display.

Finally back to his best after a slow start to the season, Son was a constant menace to Frankfurt, whose defender Tuta was sent off in the second half for two fouls on the 30-year-old South Korean.

Frankfurt's Faride Alidou reduced the deficit in the 87th minute, while Kane missed a stoppage-time penalty but Tottenham held on, much to Conte's relief.

"We started in a very difficult way, conceding the first goal. We suffered and had to try to handle the situation," said Conte, who was screaming at his players to make their extra-man advantage count in the nervy closing stages.

"We scored good goals. We work a lot during the week to try to have good combination between our strikers. Today they showed great link up."

With two matches remaining against Sporting Lisbon and Marseille, Spurs are top of Group D on seven points, one clear of both Marseille and Sporting. Frankfurt are bottom on four points.

"We are leading our group. We have to try to beat Sporting and go to the next round," Conte said.

"Until the end, we have to stay focused. It would have been a disaster if we drew a game like this."

His ire did not stretch to Kane's wild penalty as he praised the England captain's all-round play.

"We are talking about a player that finds it very difficult to miss penalties. He's a killer," said Conte.

"I think also that today in the end he was really, really tired because he runs a lot and he played for the team and he played in a fantastic way today."

Son was just as relieved as his Italian coach to have bagged the three points.

He said: "There's always something we can improve on. It was important that we won tonight, especially after going 1-0 down. We made mistakes but the team bounced back."

Son, who was replaced by Lucas Moura in the 85th minute, added: "Sitting on the bench when they scored their second goal was uncomfortable. But it's a good lesson for everyone. You have to focus until the referee blows the final whistle."

AFP, REUTERS