LONDON (AP) - Bayer Leverkusen claimed its first victory in Champions League Group E on Wednesday, edging an insipid Tottenham side 1-0 to condemn the London club to a second successive loss at its temporary Wembley Stadium home.
A record Tottenham attendance of 85,512 saw Kevin Kampl score in the 65th minute with a deflected shot to lift Leverkusen into second place, displacing the hosts with two games remaining.
Tottenham is two points behind Leverkusen and four adrift of Monaco, which won at Wembley at the start of the group stage.
With White Hart Lane starting to be demolished to make way for a new stadium, Tottenham has moved across north London to England’s more expansive national stadium for European matches without the raucous atmosphere at its tightly-packed home.
Tottenham was devoid of creativity and attacking threat - looking disjointed as the German visitors moved the ball around more confidently.
Tottenham’s malaise was summed up late in the game when Eric Dier hit the crossbar with a free kick and a jittery Vincent Janssen couldn’t bundle the rebound into the net.
Tottenham has been on a downward spiral in the month since demonstrating the team’s potential by beating Manchester City in the Premier League.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side has failed to win any of it is six matches since outclassing City, but is fifth in the Premier League.
This latest Champions League setback came against a Leverkusen side that is languishing in 11th place in the Bundesliga, with Tottenham sorely missing last season’s top scorer as Harry Kane remains sidelined.
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