Europa League results: Basel 2-2 Tottenham (4-1 on penalties)

Ten-man Spurs have been surprisingly knocked out of Europa League by modest Basel on penalties, after a 2-2 draw in an action-packed game at Sankt Jakob-Park.

Tottenham boss Andre Villas-Boas faced a selection headache ahead of the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final with several key players out due to injuries. Bale and Lennon picked up injuries during a first-leg clash against a Swiss side, ended in a 2-2 draw, while Defoe has been struggling to recover from his long-term problem.

Clint Dempsey gave Tottenham the lead in the 23rd minute of the game, after capitalizing on Dragovic’s mistake to round the goalkeeper and send the ball into the net. Mohamed Salah scored an equalizer with a fine low shot after Dembele’s error three minutes later. Dragovic put Basel ahead for the first time in the game with a tap in after Schaer’s shot was denied by Friedel. Dempsey scored his second of the game with 8 minutes to go. With Spurs struggling to score the much-needed winning goal, things went from bad to worse, when Vertonghen earned an early bath for a professional foul on Streller in the 89th minute of the game.

Despite Basel having several decent chances in extra time, they were unable to convert them into goals. Tottenham have successfully held on for penalties. Basel have deservedly won the shoot-out by scoring four penalties, while Adebayor and Huddlestone missed for Villas-Boas’ side.