Playing in the UCL as winners of Europe’s second-tier competition, Tottenham got off to the perfect start, opening the scoring inside four minutes after Villarreal goalkeeper Luiz Junior inadvertently turned Lucas Bergvall’s cross into the back of his own net.
The Spanish side looked to immediately respond as former Arsenal man Nicolas Pepe drove at the Spurs defence before cutting inside and curling his effort just past the post.
Pepe was proving to be the danger man for the Yellow Submarine as he pounced on a poor clearance from the hosts before picking out Tajon Buchanan, but the Canadian international let the Spurs defence off the hook by skewing his shot wide.
As the half-time drew closer, the home side thought they were going to have the chance to double their lead from the penalty spot after Richarlison was brought down in the box, but following a VAR review, no spot-kick was given, keeping the scoreline at 1-0 going into the interval.
Villarreal looked the most dangerous side following the restart, and created the better early chances as Juan Foyth headed wide, before Pepe flashed a shot inches wide of the post after a high press saw Spurs give the ball away in a dangerous area.
Thomas Frank’s men managed to ride the storm and create their own momentum going forward, but several half-chances came to nothing.
Neither side was able to capitalise on their opportunities in the frenetic closing stages, with Pepe summing up his evening by flashing another effort wide of the post late on from a free-kick on the edge of the box.
In the end, it was the solitary goal that proved to be enough for Spurs to begin their UCL campaign with a victory and a clean sheet.
Defeat leaves Villarreal without a win in three matches across all competitions, and a tricky game against Juventus awaits them on matchday two.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Lucas Bergvall (Tottenham Hotspur)