Before we go any further, about the headline: Besiktas is a very good side, so to say drawing them at home is a stumble is more based on the lofty goals set by Spurs administration than anything about the Turkish side.
And when the manager of that Turkish side says he’s disappointed not to have pulled all three points from a game at White Hart Lane, you can honestly say Tottenham did not have the performance they wanted from their second group game of Europa League play.
Harry Kane scored in the 27th minute, but a Vlad Chiriches handball in the final minutes allowed Demba Ba to draw Besiktas level and share the points with an 89th minute penalty kick.
[ MORE: UEFA Champions League roundup ]
Besiktas took 15 more shots than the hosts and had a 53-47 edge in possession. Spurs had plenty of talent on the bench, with regulars Younes Kaboul, Erik Lamela and Aaron Lennon not starting the contest.
The draw brings Spurs out of Group C’s basement and level with Besiktas for the second spot. Asteras Tripolis is first with four points through two matches.
Elsewhere…
Celtic got an early goal from Kris Commons then held on despite extreme duress provided by visiting Dinamo Zagreb. The 1-0 win moves moves them level FC Red Bull Salzburg, who beat Astra Giurgiu 2-1.
Late thrills were on display in the game’s highest-profile match, as Bundesliga powers Wolfsburg came back to draw Lille 1-1. Divock Origi, on loan from Liverpool, netted in the 77th minute before Kevin De Bruyne canceled it out five minutes later.
[ MORE: Everton draws Krasnodar ]
The scoreline doesn’t indicate the great resolve showed by Sevilla after a 52nd minute red card helped turn the 1-0 lead provided by Iago Aspas into a 2-1 deficit at HNK Rijeka. Stephane Mbia scored a dramatic stoppage time winner to lift Los Nervionenses.
Borussia Monchengladbach took 30 shots to FC Zurich’s nine, only to see themselves splitting the points with their Swiss hosts 1-1.
It was a good day for Italy, as Inter, Torino and Napoli all won, with Fiorentina unloading a 3-0 decision on Dinamo Minsk.
Other scores
Villarreal 4-0 Apollon Limassol
Aalborg BK 1-0 Rio Ave
Dynamo Kiev 3-1 Steaua Bucharest
Dinamo Minsk 0-3 Fiorentina
Guingamp 2-0 PAOK Salonika
KSC Lokeren 1-0 Metalist Kharkiv
Trabzonspor 0-1 Legia Warsaw
HJK Helsinki 0-3 Club Brugge
Dinamo Moscow 1-0 PSV Eindhoven
Krasnodar 1-1 Everton
Torino 1-0 FC Copenhagen
Estroil Praia 2-0 Panathinaikos
Inter Milan 2-0 FK Qarabag
St Etienne 0-0 Dnipro Dnipropretrovsk
Feyenoord 2-1 Standard Liege
Wolfsburg 1-1 Lille
Slovan Bratislava 0-2 Napoli
Sparta Prague 3-1 BSC Young Boys
