A Darren Bent hat-trick in Tottenham’s 4-0 win over Dynamo Zagreb sparked an English renaissance in the UEFA Cup on Thursday, while tournament favorites AC Milan left it late to see off Braga.
Manchester City’s Shaun Wright-Phillips ensured former England coach Steve McClaren’s visit to home soil got off to a bad start when he played a one-two with Brazilian Jo to slam in the opener in the second minute.
Mark Hughes’ men lost the one-goal advantage 15 minutes later when FC Twente’s Eljero Elia punished poor City defending by latching on to a loose ball to shoot past Joe Hart from the edge of the box.
That left City with it all to do in the second period, but Brazilian star striker Robinho duly obliged 12 minutes in when he got on to the end of a Stephen Ireland pass to curl a shot high into the top corner.
Benjani added a third five minutes later and, though the Dutch scored a second through Rob Wielaert, City never looked like losing.
It’s all change for Tottenham Hotspur under new coach Harry Redknapp, whose side put in an imperious first-half performance to ensure victory at home to Croatia’s Dynamo Zagreb.
Bent, who had been unable to find his feet under former coach Juande Ramos, blasted in two goals home inside three minutes to give Tottenham a commanding lead going into the interval.
Tom Huddlestone capped off an excellent performance with Spurs’ third on the hour mark, but the night belonged to Bent after the 24-year-old notched up his third on 70 minutes.
Martin O’Neill’s Aston Villa overcame Slavia Prague in a difficult encounter thanks to a John Carew deflected shot, which inflicted the first defeat for the Prague side at home in seven matches.
Aston Villa pair Steve Sidwell and Brad Guzan said the future looked bright in the competition this season.
Sidwell told BBC five television: “It’s been a frustrating start for me personally so it was good to play. We’ve got a fantastic squad and the manager bought well. It [the UEFA Cup] is very important and we want to go all the way. We proved that tonight.”
Guzan, who replaced Brad Friedel in goal, added: “We did a great job in terms of commitment and defending as a unit. Every opportunity you get you want to prove yourself to the coaching staff and everyone else.”
“Obviously we want to go in [to the Zilina match] with the right mentality and get three points,” Guzan said.
“I think we deserved to win,” said O’Neill, who had left first-pick keeper Brad Friedel, captain Martin Laursen and England man Gareth Barry on the bench.
Looking at the situation in the group, O’Neill said: “I believe now that seven points will definitely get us through” to the playoff stage scheduled for next spring.
Facing Sporting Braga, Brazilian legend Ronaldinho eased nerves at the San Siro when the AC Milan substitute connected with a Gennaro Gattuso pass on the edge of the box to unleash a stunning shot into the top-left corner.
It was a moment of brilliance — albeit a late one coming in the third minute of stoppage time — from the former Barcelona star, and it sent a strong message to Milan’s UEFA rivals.
A double from Germany international Mario Gomez gave Stuttgart a win at home to Group C rivals Partizan Belgrade, while Hertha Berlin drew 0-0 away to Ukrainian side Metalist Kharkiv.
In Group H, French side Nancy rescued a point away to Lech Poznan of Poland, while St Etienne won 3-0 at home to Rosenborg.
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