Those of you dedicated enough (if you live in the USA) to wake up this morning at 6 a.m. ET or earlier to watch Tottenham Hotspur play an international friendly match in Japan were treated to a fun game! Spurs, playing in sweltering Tokyo heat, defeated defending J-League champions Vissel Kobe 3-2 behind goals from Pedro Porro, Son Heung-Min, and Mikey Moore.
We’ve already talked about the match — it was fun! The starting players got an extended run against a real team in mid-season form, the younger players got a good run out, and best of all Tottenham Hotspur won its first totally-real-and-not-at-all-made-up trophy since the 2019 Audi Cup, lifting the J-League World Challenge Cup winners plaque!
It totally counts, shut up. Want proof? If you’re reading this on Saturday, July 27 be sure and type “Tottenham Hotspur” into a Google search window, because there’s a pretty neat surprise waiting for you.
Actually, if you missed it, then never mind — I did it for you. Check it out.
See that? Those are REAL GOOGLE FIREWORKS and a rising banner saying Spurs are J-League World Challenge Cup Champions. That shit doesn’t just HAPPEN, it’s the same graphic Real Madrid got for winning the Champions League, which makes the J-League World Challenge Cup on par with the best competitions club football has to offer.
That’s also officially one more trophy than Harry Kane has won at Bayern Munich and I will not have it slandered. Think it doesn’t mean anything? Try telling that to J-League World Challenge Cup match-winner (and forthcoming Premier League golden boot winner) Mikey Moore and Best J-League Manager of All Time Ange Postecoglou. “It has always been my life’s ambition to return to Japan to win the prestigious J-League World Challenge Cup with Tottenham Hotspur and I’m so thrilled to be able to succeed today,” Postecoglou said in post-match comments, probably.
Spurs will now have an attempt to do the preseason double when they host Bayern Munich in the VisitMalta Cup on August 10, a win which will no doubt set the stage for their Premier League and Europa League winning campaigns this upcoming season. J-League World Challenge Cup Champions, you’ll never sing that!