Tottenham Hotspur overcame a disastrous start against Juventus to earn a 2-2 draw in their UEFA Champions League round-of-16 first leg tie at the Allianz Stadium in Turin with Spurs midfielder Christian Eriksen stealing the show with a majestic performance on Tuesday night.

Gonzalo Higuain had put the hosts ahead in the second minute after Spurs dozed off on a free-kick with the Argentine hitman expertly volleying past Hugo Lloris and he would double their lead soon after as the visitors looked like they were in a reverie.

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Lilywhites fullback Ben Davies was late to react and conceded a penalty and Higuain promptly dispatched the spot-kick to put the BIanconeri out of sight with less than 10 minutes played.

Spurs, however, responded by dominating possession and gradually came into the game. Harry Kane would spurn a golden chance to reduce the deficit when Eriksen found him unmarked inside the box with a delightful cross but his header was well-saved by Gianluigi Buffon.

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As Mauricio Pochettino’s men upped the ante, they did leave themselves open to a counter and on the half-hour mark, both sides had a chance to score but somehow the scoreline was unchanged.

Eventually, Kane would find the back of the net and this time it was Dele Alli who would slip him in for a one-on-one. Kane calmly rounded Buffon and finished into an empty net with 10 minutes left in the half.

There was enough time for more drama, however, and Spurs would shoot themselves in the foot when Serge Aurier brought down Douglas Costa in the box with a rash challenge on the stroke of half-time to give Higuain a chance to record a hat-trick.

The Argentine, however, contrived to smash his effort against the crossbar and Spurs lived to see another day.

With the away goal in the bag, the Lilywhites were looking good to score again and would continue the second half as they finished the first.

Juve continued to threaten on the counter, with Federico Bernardeschi forcing a fine save from Lloris but it was the away side who would score the definitive fourth goal.

Alli won a free-kick on the edge of the box and Eriksen would send a low effort past Buffon to turn the tide of the tie in the favour of the Premier League outfit.

With two away goals, Spurs have a small but important advantage and will be backing themselves to progress to the quarters when the Bianconeri come visiting for the return leg on March 7.