Tranmere 0-7 Tottenham: Fernando Llorente hat-trick helps Spurs hit seven in FA Cup
Fernando Llorente celebrates scoring Tottenham's second goal with team-mate Heung-Min Son
Fernando Llorente helped himself to a hat-trick as Tottenham cruised into the fourth round of the FA Cup after a 7-0 thrashing of Tranmere at Prenton Park.
Tranmere battled back into the first half after a difficult start, but were caught by a bolt out of the blue as Serge Aurier scored the opener from range in the 40th minute.
After the break, however, Spurs showed their class and ran riot in front of goal, with Llorente firing his second of the season to double Spurs' advantage in the 48th minute, before Aurier doubled his Tottenham career tally in the 55th minute.
Heung-Min Son got in on the act two minutes later, a quick-fire double from Llorente (71 & 72) completed his hat-trick, before a fine finish from substitute Harry Kane late on put the seal on the demolition.
A much-changed Tottenham side still had plenty of firepower on the pitch, and should have been at least a goal to the good in the early stages.
Firstly, Son raced clear only to be denied by the legs of Scott Davies in the home goal, before Lucas Moura missed an even clearer opening, firing straight at Davies from point-blank range.
Serge Aurier celebrates with Tottenham team-mates after opening the scoring
The hosts did settle into the contest and had a few half chances, before Aurier dispossessed James Norwood after a corner had only been half cleared, before slicing an effort into the net from 25 yards, with the aid of a slight deflection.
Eight changes for Tottenham from their win over Cardiff, with only Dele Alli, Heung-Min Son and Davinson Sanchez the only ones to keep their place. Harry Kane is on the bench, with Christian Eriksen also available should things go wrong.Tranmere make just the two changes from their last league game with Harvey Gilmour and cult hero Steve McNulty coming in.
Spurs stepped it up a gear after the break, and had made sure of the win with consummate ease before the hour mark.
Firstly, Son superbly pulled the ball back for Llorente to fire home, before Aurier collected a superb pass from Son and scored his fourth goal since signing for Spurs. Son then skipped past several defenders and fired into the bottom corner.
Llorente then slotted two fine finishes into the net - the goals less than a minute apart - to complete a second FA Cup hat-trick for Spurs.
With the score at 6-0, Mauricio Pochettino would have been forgiven for resting his stars, but instead, he decided to bring on the Premier League's joint top goalscorer in Kane, and his flicked finish put the seal on the thrashing.
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Via SKY Sports
My view: Tranmere took a severe drubbing at the hands of Spurs. Man of the match: Heung-Min Son. Tranmere players should donate a quarter of their pay for this week to charity, as they don't deserve their full pay for getting savagely thumped by Tottenham.