Lothar Matthaus has praised Tottenham for their performance against Real Madrid and was surprised they avoided defeat at the Bernabeu.
Spurs earned a point against the Spanish champions in the Champions League group stage match with a 1-1 draw.
The north London club more than held their own against the reigning Champions League holders and are now in a brilliant position to reach the knockout rounds of the competition.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side will host Madrid on the 1 November in another group stage clash, but have Premier League games against Liverpool, West Ham and Manchester United to deal with first.
Matthaus has admitted he was stunned by the quality of Spurs’ performance in the mid-week clash against Madrid and was convinced they would fall to a defeat.
“This was the performance of the week for me,” Matthaus wrote in the Sun. “I thought that Spurs would play well at Real but I still expected them to lose.
“They really surprised me. They deserved their draw, had chances to win, and showed they are a good and improving team. It is not easy for any team to play like that at the Bernabeu and it showed what Pochettino has done.”
OPINION
Spurs’ display against Madrid shows that they can mix it with the very best and they were also without key players such as Victor Wanyama, Mousa Dembele and Dele Alli. The North London club have taken giants strides under Pochettino in the last few years and impressing on the European stage is a major positive. They are in pole position to qualify out of a group that consists Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, two consistent performers in Europe during recent years.