Just three days after refusing to applaud supporters and complaining about the boos, Micky van de Ven set about soothing Tottenham’s wounds with what must go down as one of the most outrageously extravagant goals ever scored by a centre half.
Collecting the ball on the edge of his own penalty area, he tore down the centre of the pitch, roared on as he carved through Copenhagen’s green shirts and thrashed a shot into the net with his left foot.
'I saw a little gap in front of me, so I thought, okay I will start dribbling now,' Van de Ven told TNT Sports. 'I was seeing if they could catch up. I saw the space, every time more and more. And then at one point, I felt like I am through now. I got the goal now.'
After two years of hamstring problems, the flying Dutchman joked about concern rippling through the medical team. 'Probably they were worried,' he smiled. 'But I feel good. I felt amazing in the sprint as well. Okay, I can keep going and going and I did.'
Van de Ven could not resist cupping an ear as he wheeled away in celebration. It was he and Djed Spence who had blanked boss Thomas Frank’s requests to acknowledge supporters after Saturday’s defeat at home against Chelsea because they had been angry about the defeat and the fans who booed the team before the end of the game.
'He can keep walking past me if he is angry after the game,' joked Frank after this win. 'It seemed we had Lionel Messi turned into Micky van de Ven from one end to the other.'
It was his sixth goal of the season. And the third of the night for Spurs, who had already been reduced to 10 men.
Brennan Johnson, scorer of the first, had been sent off after a VAR intervention for a sliding tackle from behind, with more than half an hour still to play. The numerical disadvantage did not deter Frank’s team who were destructive on the break as Copenhagen detected a way back into the contest and ventured forward.
Palhinha came on in the reshuffle and added the fourth. Wilson Odobert was also on target and Richarlison twice rattled the woodwork in the closing stages, once from a penalty won by Dane Scarlett.
It all made for a wild ending. Goals, forwards scoring, creators creating. Everybody managed to smile, even Xavi Simons, who had been upset to be sacrificed after the red card when enjoying his best performance in Spurs colours.
Pointedly, Tottenham’s players gathered in the centre of the pitch after the final whistle and walked around the pitch together at the end, clapping the fans, a show of solidarity as the resident DJ gave Bob Marley’s One Love a spin and everybody went home happy even if questions will linger about the quality of Copenhagen.
Can Frank’s team deliver this sort of fluency against better opposition? We will find out. The next three games are against Manchester United, Arsenal and Paris Satin-Germain.
For now, the Danes delivered welcome relief for their compatriot. The Spurs boss had started to look a little beleaguered amid incessant questions about style, creative flair and where the goals might come from.
Here, his team were free-flowing win and the goal spree was sparked by Johnson, last season’s top scorer but used only sparingly by Frank, who dashed clear of goalkeeper Dominik Kotarski to open the scoring in the 19th minute.
Simons made the assist, and confidence came rushing back for the Dutch playmaker who buzzed around demanding the ball and looking to thread passes into the wingers and Randal Kolo Muani, who wasted two clear chances for his first Spurs goal at the end of the first half.
Both opportunities were created by Simons. The first, linking up with Odobert and sliding a pass square. Kolo Muani side-footed it wide when he seemed certain to score. Then a cross clipped from the right, which he headed over.
Kolo Muani could have done with a goal but instead made Tottenham’s second by charging down an attempted clearance by Kotarski then pulling the ball down out of the sky with a sublime touch before lining up Odobert with an open goal.
Briefly, it seemed as if matters might be complicated by Johnson’s red card. Simons was crestfallen to be sacrificed as Spurs strengthened midfield after the red card. He refused to engage with Frank’s attempts at consolation as he came off.
'I understand his disappointment but it’s always about the team,' said the Spurs boss and his change appeared to be inspired when Palhinha scored the fourth after a charge out of defence by Cristian Romero with hints of Van de Ven but not as quick.