Eriksen strike gives Spurs last-gasp Burnley win

Monday, 17 December 2018 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Tottenham’s Christian Eriksen scores their first goal - Action Images via Reuters

Reuters: Tottenham Hotspur substitute Christian Eriksen scored in added time as they snatched a 1-0 win over Burnley at Wembley Stadium to stay within five points of leaders Manchester City in the Premier League.

Sean Dyche’s Burnley side looked to have secured a crucial point in their fight to move clear of the bottom three but Eriksen broke their hearts with a clinical finish for third-placed Spurs in the 91st minute.

The Dane was relieved to have broken his goal drought after scoring for the first time in the Premier League since April as Spurs made it 10 wins in their last 12 league games to keep alive their title challenge.

“Every time you come on you want to make an impact. To score in extra time was extra nice,”Eriksen, who came on in the 65th minute, told Sky Sports.

“Any goal if it is your first or number 20 is always very important and it is nice to score.

“Getting in a flow like we are now feeds confidence. We are in a good situation and feel confident going into any game.”

Eriksen’s winner completed a dream week for Mauricio Pochettino’s side who qualified for the Champions League knockout stages in midweek with a superb draw at Barcelona.

In the Premier League, they are just three points behind second-placed Liverpool, who face Manchester United on Sunday. The win could have been a lot bigger for the London club but they came up against impressive Burnley goalkeeper Joe Hart, no stranger to Wembley having been England’s number one, who made his best save after 74 minutes from Erik Lamela’s low effort.

Tottenham continued to create the best openings and blew two great chances in the final 10 minutes when Son Heung-min and Dele Alli failed to find the target.

But Eriksen ensured the home side came away with all three points a minute into injury-time when he was picked out by Harry Kane and fired the ball into the top corner.

“It is a very good week for us, a fantastic win for us today, it is so important to be focused and try to keep our energy,”Pochettino told the BBC. “After the Barcelona game and qualifying for the next stage of the Champions League, it is difficult to find the way to perform like this. Today, I congratulate my players’ effort and the 50,000 fans. It was a late victory but so important for us.

“The character to always push to the end shows great belief and faith in the way we play. That pleases me the most.”