Sept 27, V7N - Tottenham Hotspur secured a 3-0 victory against Qarabag in their Europa League opener despite being down to 10 men early on. The match, delayed by over half an hour due to travel issues, saw Spurs lose Radu Dragusin to a red card after just eight minutes. However, Brennan Johnson quickly gave them the lead with a composed finish just four minutes later, and Pape Matar Sarr doubled the advantage seven minutes into the second half. Dominic Solanke added a third in the 68th minute, capitalizing on a mistake by Qarabag's keeper, Mateusz Kochalski.

Qarabag had opportunities to get back into the game, with Tural Baymarov missing a penalty and Junior hitting the woodwork, but Tottenham maintained control. Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou praised his team’s intent and resilience despite the early setback.

Elsewhere in the Europa League, AS Roma were held to a 1-1 draw by Athletic Bilbao, with Artem Dovbyk’s header being cancelled out by Aitor Paredes late on. Rangers claimed a 2-0 win over Malmo with goals from Nedim Bajrami and Ross McCausland, while Ajax cruised to a 4-0 victory over Besiktas, thanks to strikes from Kian Fitz-Jim, Kenneth Taylor, and two from Mika Godts.

Olympique Lyonnais secured a 2-0 win against Olympiacos with two second-half goals from Rayan Cherki and Said Benrahma. Meanwhile, Eintracht Frankfurt played out a thrilling 3-3 draw against Viktoria Plzen after the Czech side staged a late comeback.

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