Spurs suffered their first loss of the Europa League this season on Thursday night.
Will Lankshear endured a rollercoaster night in front of a raucous Rams Park crowd after he was sent off in Tottenham’s 3-2 loss at Galatasaray in the Europa League.
Lankshear scored his first goal for the club in the 18th minute to cancel out Yunus Akgun’s sixth-minute opener.
However, the 19-year-old forward received two bookings in quick succession after half-time to earn a maiden red card in professional football.
Spurs were already 3-1 down at this point after a first-half double by Victor Osimhen, but Ange Postecoglou turned to his bench and watched Dominic Solanke score in the 69th minute to set up a grandstand finish.
It was too much of an ask for Tottenham’s 10 men, though, as Galatasaray held on to leapfrog them in the Europa League table.
Postecoglou made seven changes from Sunday’s win over Aston Villa with three teenagers in Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall and Lankshear included in the starting line-up.
A cauldron of noise greeted the Spurs players for the warm-up and it was even louder when play got under way.
Every touch by a visiting player was whistled but they soon turned to celebrations when Akgun fired the hosts ahead with a swerving half-volley from 25 yards after Gray partially headed clear a free-kick.
Fraser Forster had to slide in on Osimhen soon after following a poor back pass by Bergvall, but Tottenham regrouped and levelled after 18 minutes.
Gray brought the ball forward and wonderfully chipped over the Galatasaray defence into the path of Brennan Johnson, who squared for Lankshear to divert the ball in at the back post.
It was not the slickest finish from Lankshear as his effort from close range ballooned into the roof of the net, but it was a moment to savour for him.
Spurs’ respite did not last long and Osimhen punished them with two goals in eight minutes.
After Forster had produced a fine low save to thwart Osimhen, he had the ball in the net on the half an hour mark but was flagged for offside.
