Spurs do just enough without sidelined A-listers to maintain perfect start to Europa campaign

Europa League - Matchday 3/8

Tottenham (0) 1 Richarlison 53 pen

AZ Alkmaar (0) 0 Moller Wolfe s/0 86

It was a long way from the white heat of knock-out contests, but Spurs won't mind too much as they made it three wins onut of three at the start of their Euro mission.

A much-changed line-up from the usual weekend one - as will be the norm during the early stages of the now-elongated Europa League competition - did just enough, winning it with a solitary penalty.

The first chance that came Spurs' way was an illustration of those changes with Timo Werner's cross almost glanced in by Mikey Moore. Fraser Forster was in goal. Radu Dragusin was given as start, as were Archie Gray and Lucas Bergvall. Hell, even Richarlison got a game.

And it was the Brazilian who hit the winner from 12 yards, having wrestled the ball away from James Maddison to take responsibility.

Tottenham are now just one of three teams with a perfect record so far - Lazio and Anderlecht the others.

Richarlison's goal may have done the business but the night was one which the bright talents of Moore proved to be the most memorable feature of the night.

It was an interesting night for Maddison too. Made skipper for the game, he was in the weird position of having to try and power back to prominence, having been very publicly axed during the interval against West Ham at the weekend. He hadn't been playing badly but was hauled off in favour of a dynamic Pape Sarr.

The Eredivisie side - who once reached this final back in the early 80s against Ipswich Town - had started with a 3-2 victory over Swedes Elfsborg and a 2-0 defeat at Atletico Bilbao. They finished fourth last season in the Dutch league.

The Cheese Heads, as they are known, are not one of the heavyweights of European football, it has to be said, but they entertain hopes of making the play-offs for the knockouts. They once had a run of 32 undefeated home games in Europe which Everton brought to an end in 2007.

The match was a good one for confirming pre-set notions - such as the ones about Spurs lacking an edge without some of the regulars and Werner being a hopeless finisher. The German looked so diffident when put through by Bergvall and no-one was surprised that he hit a tame effort at the keeper.

Alkmaar, like Qarabag before them here on matchday one, did have some hopeful moments. Ernest Poku's scampers down the left caused some consternation and Forster had to leap acrobatically to reach a goalbound header from Alexandre Penetra.

The hapless Werner, who also missed from another decent opening, was hooked in favour of the in-form Brennan Johnson at the interval and there was an immediate upturn in expectation as Spurs attacked the massed South Bank.

Southwark-born Moore, who is only 17, started to dazzle on the left flank and the crowd revelled in seeing "one of our own" enjoying himself. The teenager displayed bags of confidence and almost scored after cutting in from the left before drilling a low cross-shot just wide of the far post.

The change in tempo and mood soon brought a goal as Bergvall won a spot-kick off Maxim Dekker's tackle from behind and Richarlison coolly chipped down the middle for his first of the season.

Ange sent on Dejan Kulusevski and Sarr to close out the contest, but Mayckel Lahdo wasn't far away from ruining Tottenham's prefect start when he just got ahead of Dragusin to fire low at Forster - the keeper once again equal to the task.

AZ finished with 10 men as David Moller Wolfe picked up a second yellow for a foul on Johnson - the game fading out without much fanfare.

It's so far so good for Spurs then, though the remaining games before the turn of the year should prove less straightforward than the three played so far. Next up is a trip to Istanbul to play Galatasaray in two weeks, with a home tie with Roma in between the visit to Turkey and a December tip to Ibrox to face Rangers.

Spurs: (4-3-3) Forster - Gray, Dragusin, Davies, Udogie - Bentancur, Maddison (Sarr 73), Bergvall (Kulusevski 73) - Moore (Odobert 88), Richarlison (Solanke 64), Werner (Johnson h/t)

AZ: (4-3-3-) Owusu-Odouro - Maikuma (Lahdo 66), Penetra, Dekker (Meerdink 84), Moller Wolfe - Clasie, Mijnans (Kwakman 84), Belic (Koopmeiners h/t) - Poku, Parrott, van Bommel (Kasius 12)