A hat-trick by Roberto Soldado made it six wins out of six for Tottenham in the Europa League this season.

Already assured of a place in the knockout stages as group winners, Andre Villas-Boas’s side showed their desire in this competition by ending the qualifying stage with maximum points. Even a Spurs striker scored, with Soldado completing his treble after Lewis Holtby had scored their third.

It will get harder from now on, of course, with the likes of Juventus, Basle, Ajax and Napoli dropping into the competition from the Champions League. But for now, at least, Spurs can reflect on a job well done.

Soldado’s opening goal in the seventh minute was the first a Tottenham striker had scored from open play since Harry Kane’s 108th-minute equaliser in the Capital One Cup against Hull City on October 30.

It was an inventive flicked header from a Gylfi Sigurdsson cross after Andros Townsend had been chopped down in full flight — not for the first time, as it turned out.

Last night might have been a dead rubber against a depleted Anzhi team, but it still enabled £26million summer signing Soldado to provide a gentle reminder of his value to his manager. Perhaps the Europa League does have its uses, after all. Thursday nights have certainly been increasingly all right for Erik Lamela, for example, who set up Soldado’s second goal nine minutes later.

The striker pounced on Lamela’s neat pass, finding the far corner with his right foot. The simple nature of Anzhi’s goal, as Ewerton was allowed a metre of space in the box to prod Nikita Burmistrov’s cross past the helpless Brad Friedel, was, however, comically easy, even for a team who brought only 15 supporters and 20 playing and coaching staff.

The era of the cash-rich Anzhi of Roberto Carlos and Samuel Eto’o is gone, replaced by a team who, although already assured of a place in the knockout rounds, could not fill their substitutes’ bench.

Danny Rose played 45 minutes at left back having been out since September 19 with a toe injury, while Christian Eriksen was also fit enough to make the bench after damaging his right ankle in November.

Holtby worked characteristically hard in an uncharacteristic holding midfield role and scored a lovely third goal for Tottenham after 54 minutes, deftly controlling Townsend’s cross with his left foot and then dinking it over the goalkeeper with the same foot before it hit the ground.

Soldado completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot after substitute Ryan Fredericks was brought down by Jucilei in the 70th minute.

—Daily Mail