Spurs enjoyed the majority of the early possession and a pair of power strikes from Mathys Tel forced Atletico stopper Juan Musso into action in the opening quarter.

The breakthrough came with the work of that man Tel, whose cross from the right was perfect for Randal Kolo Muani to head past the rooted Musso.

Diego Simeone's side could not contain the flying Frenchman, who was played in by Simons five minutes later and only a sharp save from Musso denied him.

Tottenham's hard work was almost undone just before the break as Critsian Romero deflected a thunderous effort from Giuliano Simeone that Spurs gloveman Guglielmo Vicario palmed away to keep the tie alive.

But there was nothing Vicario could do less than two minutes after the restart. Colchoneros broke from deep in their own half and Ademola Lookman found Julian Alvarez in space, who turned and fired the ball into the top corner.

But plucky Spurs were not done. Five minutes later, Archie Gray won the ball and combined brilliantly with Simons, who curled a 25-yard effort beyond Musso and into the bottom corner to make it 2-1.

From a corner at the hour mark, Alvarez picked out David Hancko at the near post and he nodded in an easy leveller.

That goal finally settled the tie - as Atletico led 7-4 at the time - but there was still a chance for an embattled Tottenham to win it on the night. Defender Jose Maria Gimenez sent Xavi Simons tumbling inside the area in the dying embers of the tie, which allowed the Dutchman to roll the penalty past Musso to give his side their first victory in eight matches.

Despite being knocked out of Europe's premier tournament, Spurs manager Igor Tudor was understandably focused on the silver linings.

"The feelings are mixed, of course," the Croatian told TNT Sports.

"We are out, but it is a sensation of a very good team on the pitch. One very good performance from a lot of players.

"It was really nice that the fans recognised that the team did everything they could do. They were with us from the start and I thank them for that. It is a good direction as a team but we need to continue.

“It was important [to get the winning feeling back]. That is why I was angry about the counter-attack in the last minute. I understand the players, they wanted to score a goal. It was nice to at least take the victory.”

Emerse Fae still in dreamland after AFCON victory