Spurs earn place at top table

HAT-TRICK hero Peter Crouch fired Tottenham into the Champions League group stages last night and roared: bring on Europe’s finest.

Crouch hit three of Spurs’ four unanswered goals against Young Boys at White Hart Lane to secure a 6-3 aggregate win and guarantee their place in the lucrative first round proper.

Jermain Defoe scored the other as the hosts erased memories of their defeat in Bern last week, leaving Crouch unconcerned by the quality of opposition now facing his side.

“This is massive, we played extremely well and we deserved the bonus of Champions League football,” Crouch said.

“That’s why we worked so hard last season. We want massive games. We want Real Madrid and Inter Milan. You don’t know how good you are until you play against the best.”

Defoe, who is set for an injury lay-off after postponing an operation to take part in the match, added: “All the hard work we put in last season has paid off now. This means the world to us. It’s all about Champions League football. We know we can play on this stage.”

Manager Harry Redknapp described the achievement as his dream scenario when he arrived at White Hart Lane.

“It’s fantastic, it’s a long time since Tottenham played in the top European competition,” he said. “To get in the main competition and the group stages...when I came here that was the dream for me.”

Spurs can now look forward to some handsome funds from the group stages, but Redknapp has no plans to spend lavishly before the end of the transfer window.

“I don’t think so, people think I like to keep signing players, that’s not true at all. I won’t be pushing the chairman to buy players.’’

Spurs were on the brink of utter humiliation in Bern eight days ago, 3-0 down and all at sea on their opponents’ plastic pitch.

Having somehow scrambled two away goals and back on the green, green grass of home, Redknapp’s men demonstrated the true gulf in class that exists between fourth place in the Barclays Premier League and second in the Swiss Super League.

But Spurs’ win was not achieved without controversy on a night of torrential rain at an electric White Hart Lane.

Defoe blatantly controlled the ball with his arm to score the second goal that all but killed the contest.

There were echoes of Thierry Henry’s scandalous handball that saw France reach the World Cup at the expense of the Republic of Ireland.

But Tottenham fans will rightly point out their side were already ahead in the tie on away goals thanks to Crouch and that it could have been much, much worse for the hapless visitors, who had Senad Lulic sent off.

Young Boys were simply unable to cope with Crouch, who scored two unmarked headers and a penalty to edge the man-of-the-match honours ahead of Gareth Bale, whose four assists surely make him man of the season so far.

Harry Redknapp had ordered his side to hit Young Boys just as hard and fast last night as Spurs had been in Bern and they duly obliged.

After conceding inside four minutes last week, they were in front within five this evening.

The visitors failed to deal with Bale’s corner, giving the in-form Welshman another chance to deliver a cross for the unmarked Crouch to nod home.

Spurs pushed for a second, Aaron Lennon giving Christoph Spycher a particular headache. But, unlike last week, the floodgates failed to open, Benoit Assou-Ekotto’s piledriver blocked painfully by Ammar Jemal and Tom Huddlestone miscuing a Crouch cross.

All that changed just past the half hour mark thanks to Defoe’s sleight of hand, the striker’s arm controlling Bale’s ball before his left foot whipped it into the net, off the left upright.

Heurelho Gomes had needed lengthy treatment on a leg injury early in the game and he failed to re-emerge after half-time, Carlo Cudicini making his first appearance since a serious motorcycle accident in November.

The downpour had become a deluge but Tottenham continued to cope the better. Crouch made it 3-0 on the hour mark, again rising unchallenged to head in Bale’s corner.

Bale came agonisingly close to the goal his performance deserved before being cut down in the area by Lulic, who saw yellow for a second time.

Up stepped Crouch to complete his hat-trick from the spot and — after Bale was replaced by Niko Kranjcar to a standing ovation — the striker was denied his fourth by a brilliant save from Marco Wolfli.

Subs for Tottenham: Cudicini for Gomes 46, Kranjcar for Bale 82.

Subs for Young Boys: Regazzoni for Sutter 62, Schneuwly for Doubai 81.