Tottenham secured qualification for the Champions League

Tottenham secured qualification for the Champions League knockout phase with an outstanding display to beat holders Real Madrid on a memorable night at Wembley.

Spurs, with striker Harry Kane fit again after a hamstring injury, showed intensity and quality to make their mark on the Champions League after going out at the group stage last season.

Dele Alli gave Spurs the lead after 27 minutes when he turned in Kieran Trippier's cross from close range, then doubled the advantage early in the second half with a shot that took a deflection off Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos.

Christian Eriksen provided a cool finish from Kane's pass for the third and even though Cristiano Ronaldo pulled one back for Real with 10 minutes left, it was too little, too late, as Spurs made a powerful statement about their European aspirations.

• We are among Europe's best - Pochettino
• 5 live Football Daily: 'Real Madrid victory the greatest in Spurs' history'
• 'Spurs' progression is frightening', says Ian Wright

The only blip for Spurs was the injury to defender Toby Alderweireld who came off with a hamstring injury in the 24th minute. The Belgian said he would be "out for a few weeks".

They lead Group H with 10 points, three more than second-place Real while both Borussia Dortmund and Apoel Nicosia have two points after they drew 1-1.

Tottenham's success also came on a excellent night for English clubs in Champions League action with Manchester City winning 4-2 at Napoli and Liverpool recording a 3-0 victory over Maribor.

Alli has fallen just short of his very best this season - but against the Champions League holders, he produced a display to savour.

The 21-year-old is bound to suffer peaks and troughs at this early stage in his career and he has received unfavourable headlines this season. He was criticised for a dive as Spurs won at Huddersfield in September, and was involved in a well-chronicled spat with Ashley Young during Saturday's defeat at Manchester United.

Alli also served a one-match international suspension following a gesture he made during England's World Cup qualifier against Slovakia at Wembley.

However, it was all good news on this night, as he strolled majestically through midfield - no doubt impressing the watching Real Madrid hierarchy who have followed his rise at Spurs with interest.

Alli was the poacher as he stole in on Trippier's cross for his first goal - and while his second owed much to a heavy deflection off Ramos, it was reward for another surging run at the heart of the Real Madrid defence.

He should have had a hat-trick when he headed wide of an open goal, but it was a minor blemish.

England manager Gareth Southgate was an interested spectator at Wembley and he will have been delighted to see Alli in such form, as well as Kane back from injury, as he prepares for testing friendlies against Germany and Brazil in November.

Real Madrid were on the receiving end of a performance in pressing intensity, pace and power as Tottenham's manager conducted affairs, standing yards from counterpart Zinedine Zidane on the touchline.

Pochettino has yet to bring silverware to Spurs since his appointment in May 2014 but there can be no denying the progress they have made, nor the regard in which he is held by his squad.

He received plaudits when Spurs earned an excellent draw at the Bernabeu on 17 October. The manner of their win here had his imprint all across it.

Spurs may be waiting to cross that bridge to winning a trophy but this is a team and manager on an upward trajectory, as Real Madrid have discovered.

Spurs at home on the big stage

The scenes of elation that swept around Wembley at the final whistle proved how far Tottenham have come in a year - and how they can sit comfortably alongside the Champions League elite.

Tottenham secured qualification for the Champions League knockout phase with an outstanding display to beat holders Real Madrid on a memorable night at Wembley.

Spurs, with striker Harry Kane fit again after a hamstring injury, showed intensity and quality to make their mark on the Champions League after going out at the group stage last season.

Dele Alli gave Spurs the lead after 27 minutes when he turned in Kieran Trippier's cross from close range, then doubled the advantage early in the second half with a shot that took a deflection off Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos.

Christian Eriksen provided a cool finish from Kane's pass for the third and even though Cristiano Ronaldo pulled one back for Real with 10 minutes left, it was too little, too late, as Spurs made a powerful statement about their European aspirations.

• We are among Europe's best - Pochettino
• 5 live Football Daily: 'Real Madrid victory the greatest in Spurs' history'
• 'Spurs' progression is frightening', says Ian Wright

The only blip for Spurs was the injury to defender Toby Alderweireld who came off with a hamstring injury in the 24th minute. The Belgian said he would be "out for a few weeks".

They lead Group H with 10 points, three more than second-place Real while both Borussia Dortmund and Apoel Nicosia have two points after they drew 1-1.

Tottenham's success also came on a excellent night for English clubs in Champions League action with Manchester City winning 4-2 at Napoli and Liverpool recording a 3-0 victory over Maribor.It was a sharp contrast to last season, when Spurs failed to advance from the group stage after defeats by Monaco and Bayer Leverkusen at Wembley, and were then knocked out of the Europa League in the last 32 by Gent.

This was a Tottenham team at ease against the best. It is too early to speculate just how far they can go, but in this mood, Spurs can pose a threat to anyone.

Man of the match - Dele Alli (Tottenham)

'Ronaldo continues scoring run' - the stats

• Tottenham have inflicted Real Madrid's first loss in the Champions League group stage since October 2012, ending a 30-game unbeaten run.
• This is Real Madrid's biggest margin of defeat in a Champions League group game since November 2008, losing 2-0 against Juventus.
• Tottenham have finally defeated Real Madrid at their sixth attempt after losing three and drawing two of the previous five.
• Spurs are still yet to keep a clean sheet in European competition at Wembley, conceding eight goals in six games.
• Alli is the first Englishman to score a brace against Real Madrid in the Champions League since Steven Gerrard (March 2009).
• Alli has scored four goals in his last four games for Spurs; one more than he managed in his first nine this season.
• Trippier has recorded 13 assists in all competitions in 2017; six more than any other Premier League defender.
• Ronaldo has scored 10 goals v Tottenham in all comps, more than against any other English side.

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North Korea defector urges US to use soft power

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES

Image captionThae Yong-ho was North Korea's deputy ambassador to Britain

A high-level defector has told the US Congress that spreading outside information in North Korea is the best way to deal with the regime.

Thae Yong-ho said undermining Kim Jong-un's God-like status among his people could be key to weakening his rule.

North Koreans "don't care about state propaganda but increasingly watch illegally imported South Korean movies and dramas," he added.

Mr Thae was deputy ambassador to the UK before he defected last year.

He is one of the highest-ranking officials ever to defect from North Korea.

Mr Thae's speech before US lawmakers comes as President Trump is due to embark on a trip to Asia, including South Korea.

Tensions between North Korea and the West have risen over the past months as Pyongyang has conducted several missile tests and claimed to have tested a hydrogen bomb.

In his first ever visit to Washington, Mr Thae told Congress: "We can educate (the) North Korean population to stand up by disseminating outside information."

He also urged officials to meet at least once with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, to understand his thinking and convince him that his nuclear programme is risking mass destruction.

"It is necessary to reconsider whether we have tried all non-military options before we decide that military action against North Korea is all that is left," he said.

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Changes in North Korea meant that "contrary to the official policy and wish of the regime, the free markets are flourishing", he said.

People were getting more access to outside information, including through micro SD cards which were small enough to be easily smuggled into the country, he added.

Young North Koreans have begun calling said devices "nose cards" because they can be smuggled even inside one's nostrils, he cited as an example.

These developments "make it increasingly possible to think about civilian uprising in North Korea as more and more people gradually become informed about the reality of their living conditions," he argued.

Image copyrightAFP

Image captionMr Thae urged US officials to meet Kim Jong-un at least once

"The US is spending billions of dollars to cope with the military threat and yet how much does the US spend each year on information activities involving North Korea in a year? Unfortunately, it may be a tiny fraction," he said.

The rising tensions between Washington and Pyongyang have seen US President refer to Kim as "little rocket man," while the North Korean leader called Trump a "mentally deranged dotard".

North Korean defectors are one of the few sources of information about life in North Korea - yet critics caution that defector's testimonies might not always be credible, and that some defectors have changed their stories in the past

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India man wakes up to crocodile shock

Image copyrightKISHORE DASH

Image captionVillagers overpowered the crocodile and tied it to a tree

A man in a remote tribal village in the eastern Indian state of Orissa woke up to find an unexpected guest in his courtyard - a 3m (12ft) long crocodile.

Dasharath Madkami said he found the animal when a strange sound woke him up at around 03:00 local time (21:30 GMT).

He raised the alarm to alert other villagers, who overpowered the reptile and tied it to a tree.

The panicky villagers initially wanted to kill the crocodile, but were dissuaded by the headman.

Local wildlife authorities eventually came and rescued the animal.

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Image copyrightKISHORE DASH

Image captionThe animal was rescued by forest officials

There was some dispute over where it could be released.

Forest officials wanted to take it back to the nearby Satiguda dam, where it had come from, but villagers refused as they feared it would return to the village.

"There are some 30-40 crocodiles in the Satiguda dam. This one had perhaps slipped into the village, which is just a kilometre away from the dam, to lay eggs," local forest official Sushant Nayak told the BBC.

The crocodile was ultimately released into the Balimela reservoir, 60km (37 miles) away.

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Sexual harassment: More stars facing accusations

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Image captionActors Dustin Hoffman (L) and Kevin Spacey (R) have been accused of sexual misconduct

Two Oscar-winning actors, a Hollywood filmmaker and a senior US news editor are the latest high-profile figures to be accused of sexual harassment.

The actors Kevin Spacey and Dustin Hoffman have been accused of sexual misconduct and have issued apologies.

Meanwhile, six women have accused Brett Ratner, director of the Rush Hour film series and X-Men: The Last Stand, of sexual harassment or misconduct.

Ratner's lawyer "categorically" denied all of the accusations on his behalf.

A representative for Spacey released a short statement to the US media, saying the actor "is taking the time necessary to seek evaluation and treatment. No other information is available at this time".

A growing number of allegations have been made against public figures in recent weeks.

The allegations have been sparked by multiple women speaking out against the Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, and a subsequent campaign encouraging victims to share their stories of sexual harassment under the #metoo hashtag.

So who has been accused of misconduct?

Kevin Spacey

New allegations have emerged from a number of men accusing Kevin Spacey of sexual misconduct.

US filmmaker Tony Montana claims he was groped by the actor in a Los Angeles bar in 2003. He says he was left with PTSD for six months after Spacey "forcefully" grabbed his crotch.

Mr Montana told Radar Online that he was in his thirties when the incident took place at the Coronet Bar in LA.

It follows an allegation made by Anthony Rapp that the House of Cards actor tried to "seduce" him when he was 14 years old.

Kevin Spacey says he has no recollection of that encounter, and was "beyond horrified".

Netflix halts House of Cards production

Incidents regarding Spacey are also alleged to have taken place in the UK while the two-time Oscar winner was the artistic director at the Old Vic in London between 2004 and 2015.

Mexican actor Roberto Cavazos, who acted in several plays at the theatre, claims Spacey "routinely preyed" on young male actors.

One man told the BBC about his experience of being invited to spend the weekend with Spacey in New York when he was a teenager in the 1980s.

Brett Ratner

Six women have accused Hollywood filmmaker Brett Ratner of sexual harassment or misconduct.

The women, including The Newsroom actress Olivia Munn, made the allegations in the Los Angeles Times.

Natasha Henstridge, who appeared in Species and The Whole Ten Yards, claimed she had been forced into a sex act with Ratner as a teenager.

The actress, now 43, was a 19-year-old model at the time she alleges Ratner stopped her from leaving a room at his New York apartment and then made her perform a sex act on him.

"He strong-armed me in a real way," she told the LA Times. "He physically forced himself onto me."

Ratner's lawyer "categorically" denied all of the accusations on his behalf in response to the article.

Separately, Ratner has filed a libel case in Hawaii against a woman who accused him on Facebook of rape more than 10 years ago.

Read more about the allegations against Brett Ratner here.

Dustin Hoffman

Dustin Hoffman has been accused of sexually harassing an intern on the set of one of his films in 1985.

Anna Graham Hunter, a writer, says that when she was 17, the Oscar-winning actor groped her and made inappropriate comments about sex to her.

She told The Hollywood Reporter: "He was openly flirtatious, he grabbed my ass, he talked about sex to me and in front of me."

Hoffman apologised, and said he was sorry if he "put her in an uncomfortable situation".

In a statement to the magazine, Hoffman said: "I have the utmost respect for women and feel terrible that anything I might have done could have put her in an uncomfortable situation. I am sorry. It is not reflective of who I am."

The BBC has contacted representatives of Dustin Hoffman for his response to these allegations.

Michael Oreskes

Senior editor Michael Oreskes has resigned following accusations he kissed female colleagues without their consent during business meetings.

The 63-year-old was asked to step down by the National Public Radio (NPR) network in response to the allegations. He has previously worked for the Associated Press and the New York Times.

Two women spoke to the Washington Post on condition of anonymity, and reported stories of abrupt and unexpected kisses during business meetings. They said they were worried about career development if their names were made public.

One of the women said that while she met Mr Oreskes in the hope of getting a job with the New York Times, he suggested that they eat room service lunch in a hotel, before he unexpectedly kissed her and "slipped his tongue into her mouth".

He has not commented publicly on the allegations, and journalists at NPR report that they have tried to contact him for comment, without success.

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