Spurs 3 Maribor 1: Defoe hits hat-trick to remind Hodgson what he'll be missing Read

On the day he was left out of the England squad, Jermain Defoe scored a hat-trick. Could there be a better response?
If Roy Hodgson’s squad looked light on strikers when it was announced, it looked even more short of genuine goalscoring talent by 10pm.
Defoe began his first match alongside Emmanuel Adebayor under Andre Villas-Boas and completely overshadowed his strike partner.

Hotshot: Defoe fires the opening goal past Maribor keeper Jasmin Handonovic

Match facts

Tottenham: Lloris, Walker, Dawson, Vertonghen, Naughton, Lennon (Falque 90), Huddlestone, Carroll, Bale (Mason 86), Defoe (Dempsey 82), Adebayor. Subs not used: Cudicini, Gallas, Sigurdsson, Livermore.
Booked: Bale, Carroll.
Goals: Defoe 22, 49, 77.
Maribor: Handanovic, Milec, Rajcevic, Arghus, Mejac, Cvijanovic, Mertelj (Dodlek 89), Filipovic, Ibraimi, Tavares (Komazec 76), Beric. Subs not used: Pridigar, Vidovic, Mezga, Potokar, Viler.
Booked: Mejac.
Goal: Beric 40.
Referee: Antti Munukka (Finland).

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Where Defoe finished with clinical poise, gratefully burying the brilliant passes provided by Gareth Bale — who was unplayable at times — Adebayor fell foul of the offside flag and fluffed his timing.

The Togo striker was, however,  invaluable in the second striker role, linking up play to allow Defoe to pass Teddy Sheringham in Tottenham’s  all-time scoring records by reaching 126 goals for the club.

‘It feels amazing,’ said Defoe, 30. ‘It’s the best feeling in the world. Sheringham is a forward I used to watch as a kid. He was a fantastic player and a great goal-scorer.’

It was a good night all round for Spurs, with Tom Carroll excelling in the middle to send Tottenham up to second in Group J with two games to go. At half-time, however, it felt very different.

Tottenham went in level after conceding a sloppy goal thanks to an error from Hugo Lloris and a poor back-pass from Kyle Naughton after largely dominating the first half.

Main men: Both Gareth Bale and Defoe were in exceptional form

Villas-Boas said: ‘It’s important for JD because he overtakes Sheringham’s record, which means a lot. It’s Roy’s selection for England and I  cannot comment on another manager’s selection.’

As for the Maribor goal, Villas-Boas added: ‘Mistakes make you evolve as a player and I have no problem with that. It could happen to any goalkeeper. It will not affect my decision-making.’

Villas-Boas did decide, though, to bow to popular pressure by selecting Defoe and Adebayor on only the ninth occasion the pair have started together for Spurs. Last season under Harry Redknapp, Adebayor and Defoe began eight matches together and guess what? Tottenham won seven of them.

Hotshot: Defoe fires the opening goal past Maribor keeper Jasmin Handonovic

Chances kept coming, generally courtesy of Bale’s left foot. A 17th-minute cross from the winger was a touch too high for Defoe, but the striker anticipated another inviting delivery five minutes later, stealing in front of Aleksander Rajcevic brilliantly to find the bottom right-hand corner and put Spurs ahead.

Adebayor then found the target with a delightful chipped effort, which was correctly disallowed for offside, but, with Spurs clearly in the ascendancy, they reverted to this season’s type by conceding the softest of goals.

Howler: Hugo Lloris failed to deal with Kyle Naughton's poor backpass, leaving Robert Beric with a gift of a goal

Howler: NK Maribor players celebrate after Robert Beric scored their first goal

Face like thunder: Naughton reflects on a shocking ball to his keeper

When Naughton passed the ball back to his goalkeeper, Lloris tried to dribble it past Robert Beric only for the striker to intercept and knock the ball in with his right foot. It was a dangerous back-pass but the Frenchman should not have been so ambitious.

Fabrice Muamba made an emotional return to White Hart Lane at half-time, thanking Tottenham for their support after he collapsed on this pitch last March. It was a poignant moment as the former Bolton midfielder tearfully tried to explain his gratitude and need for closure.

Emotional scenes: Fabrice Muamba returned to the White Hart Lane pitch - the scene of his cardiac arrest last year - at half-time

It took only four minutes for the atmosphere to lift again as Carroll and Defoe combined to score Spurs’ second. The young midfielder’s one-touch pass set Defoe free and his left-foot shot flew past Jasmin Handanovic in the Maribor goal.

Yet Spurs still failed to take command, quickly conceding a soft free-kick from which Beric was unlucky not to score. Adebayor then mistimed a volley after a beautiful chip from Bale beat the offside trap.

Crunch time: Maribor's Martin Milec goes in hard on Gareth Bale

Familiar face: Former Tottenham player Jurgen Klinsmann - currently coach of the USA - sits next to chairman Daniel Levy (right)

Defoe added his third brilliantly after 77 minutes after unsuccessfully appealing for a penalty.

Tom Huddlestone picked out Bale on the left and Defoe pounced in the centre to finish a thrilling counter-attack.

Three goals for Defoe and three points for Spurs. Take that, Roy Hodgson.