Tottenham Hotspur - UEFA Europa League Quarter-Finalists
Tottenham Hotspur are through to the quarter-finals of the UEFA Europa League. A much-deserved 3-1 win (3-2 over both legs) over AZ Alkmaar saw Spurs make it past the round of 16 of a major European competition for the first time since our historic Champions League run in 2019.
Being one-nil down going into the second leg, some fans saw this as Ange’s last chance before fully turning on him, but what happens if we keep winning? We’re essentially four more games away from the final in Bilbao. So, is Ange really under the pressure cooker till we win? I think it’s rather stupid to feel that way because he’s had the odds stacked against him all season. Plus, he’s not the first manager to be under this kind of pressure. Any manager that goes to Tottenham is expected to win a trophy and end that drought we’re in. As I said in my last article, despite how bad we’ve been this season, we’re favourites to win the Europa League. I think the English media want to pile on the pressure to Ange and Tottenham, so if we don’t win they have material to use to continue the negative cloud that is constantly over our club. I also think it’s disrespectful to the other clubs in the competition because England is notorious for boasting that they have the best league in the world and the best clubs, so any English teams, like Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur, no matter how bad they’re playing are expected to role over every team they come up against. Make it make sense because, to me, it doesn’t. Anyway, that’s an article for another time. Now, on to the bright spots from the game.
Odobert bringing the flare
Most people will look at Wilson Odobert’s two goals and point out how he just needed to shoot and score, basically being that backpost tap-in winger, but what we believers see is a winger that not only gets in those dangerous positions to score but also offers that flare we’ve been missing. There were some brilliant moments he produced that stood out, like when he picked up the ball in the middle of the park and dribbled through four players to then trivela pass it out to Sonny for an attack and cut inside to play one-two passes with Maddison to get attacks going. More game time and moments like this will see him replace Brennan on that right side.
Cuti and VDV start together
December 8th 2024, that is the last time Cuti Romero and Micky Van de Ven started a game together. Both seem to always sustain serious injuries, which is down to our style of play that requires them to be making sharp, short sprints throughout games. Both still look a bit rusty, but that’s expected when you haven’t been playing for a while. They did, however have their moments where they showed why they’re so important for us. Whether it’s Cuti’s line-breaking passes or Micky’s darting runs, they’ve returned at crucial parts of the season and managing their minutes is extremely vital when our backups, Kevin and Radu, are both injured. We have Archie and Davies back, but if we’re going to make a run for Bilbao, we need Cuti and Micky.
England national team snub
Djed Spence has been one of our most consistent players since making his way into the starting lineup. He’s also been one of the better fullbacks in the league, despite our positioning in the table, yet he was one of many exclusions from Thomas Tuchel’s first England squad. I think he can keep his head held high because the level he’s been performing at is exceptional, and he is now one of the mainstays in our defence. His versatility on the left and right side has provided Porro and Udogie a chance to rest which is very much needed as Destiny was injured for large parts of the season and Pedros dip in form down to him playing the most minutes in the team. No doubt, if he can maintain this level of form, Djed will make that England squad.
We now look to Fulham on Sunday before the international break, and getting three points will be crucial with the majority of our players getting a rest when we face Chelsea away on the 3rd of April. However, we all know where the focus is, and that is the first leg of the Europa League quarterfinals where we play Eintracht Frankfurt on April 10th. If our season is going to have some kind of redemption, it’ll be from our progression in the Europa League. COYS.
