There were wins for Spurs' Premier League rivals Arsenal and Leicester which left English sides looking back on a promising week in Europe with six victories and one draw from Champions League and Europa League games.
Despite Bale starting for the first time since his return from Real Madrid, it was on-loan Carlos Vinicius who made an impressive debut as Tottenham enjoyed a 3-0 win in their Group J opener.
Vinicius started in place of the resting Harry Kane and he made goals in either half for Lucas Moura and Son Heung-min, while he would have also netted himself had Andres Andrade not scored an own goal.
Bale created the goal that Andrade put through his own net with a low driving cross that was meant for Vinicius.
Spurs dominated the match's possession and attacking chances in a match that at times seemed like a friendly as Spurs became almost too comfortable.
Still, Mourinho can be happy to start the group stages with a win in a group that Tottenham should theoretically dominate.
October 22, 2020