Mourinho praises quick-thinking ball boy after dramatic Spurs comeback

Jose Mourinho has applauded a ball boy for his quick-thinking during Tottenham Hotspur’s Champions League turnaround against Olympiacos on Tuesday.

Spurs completed a superb comeback against the Greek side after conceding two goals less than 20 minutes into the match.

Dele Alli’s late first-half strike pulled one back for the home side, followed by goals from Harry Kane (two) and Serge Aurier to seal the win and progression into the knockouts.

Kane’s first goal of the night came five minutes into the second-half when a ball boy helped Tottenham’s build-up play with some fast reactions. As the ball went out of play, Spurs caught the visitors off-guard with a rapid throw-in, ultimately leading to the equalising goal.

The youngster’s delivery to Aurier allowed the Ivorian to restart play with a throw to Lucas Moura who progressed down the wing to tee up Kane.

“I love intelligent ball boys like I was,” Mourinho told BT Sport. “I was a brilliant ball boy as a kid and this kid today was brilliant. He reads the game, understands the game and made an important assist.”

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The Spurs boss went over to shake the ball boy’s hand during the goal celebrations and told BBC Radio 5 Live that he wanted to invite him to celebrate at full-time.

“I tried to invite him into the dressing room after the game to celebrate with the team but he'd slipped away.”

Mourinho has now won both of his first two games since being appointed as Mauricio Pochettino’s replacement. Spurs will progress into the Round of 16 following their group stage success.

Kane also celebrates setting a new record for becoming the fastest player in Champions League history to reach 20 goals. The England captain betters the previous records set by Alessandro Del Piero and Ruud van Nistelrooy.

Spurs join Bayern Munich, Juventus, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid as those already into the knockouts. The draw for the final-16 will take place on December 16 at 11am GMT.

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