Ange Postecoglou told Lucas Bergvall he will get “plenty of opportunities” after being forced to take the summer signing off inside 10 minutes of Thursday night’s opening Europa League clash against Qarabag.
Bergvall was named in the starting line-up for the game but was the player sacrificed when Radu Dragusin was sent off in the eighth minute for denying the visitors a clear goalscoring opportunity.
Destiny Udogie came on at left-back as Ben Davies shifted into the middle and Postecoglou opted to bring attacking midfielder Bergvall off, with the 18-year-old clearly looking dejected as he trudged off the pitch and sat on the bench.
While Bergvall’s second start for Tottenham ended prematurely, Postecoglou insisted there will be no shortage of chances for him to impress throughout the season.
“That’s football,” the Spurs boss told TNT Sports.
“He’s 18, he’ll get plenty more games. It’s a decision we had to make.
“We needed an extra midfielder in there to make sure we had cover, and we needed to bring a left-back on in Destiny.
“Just an adjustment we needed to make, nothing on Lucas. He’ll get plenty of opportunities.”
Postecoglou finds flaws in Tottenham win
It was an evening on disruption in north London as Qarabag did not arrive at the ground until 7:45pm, 15 minutes before the game was due to start, due to major travel issues.
Kick-off was delayed for 35 minutes before Dragusin’s early red card looked like it would put Spurs on the back foot for the rest of the game.
However, despite conceding numerous chances and Toral Bayramov missing a penalty for Qarabag, Postecoglou’s men ended up winning 3-0 thanks to goals from Brennan Johnson, Pape Matar Sarr and Dominic Solanke.
And despite his side getting the job done in difficult circumstances, Postecoglou was left frustrated by the manner in which Tottenham began the match.
“I wasn’t happy because I just felt we started really sloppy,” he said.
“We spoke really about making sure we started high-tempo, high-intensity. It’s almost like the delay got to us or whatever.
“Leading up to [the red card] we were very passive in our passing. When that happens, somebody switches off and unfortunately Radu had to pay the price of that.
“The reaction after that was good and we still won the game, but not happy with the start.”
Richarlison being tipped for Brazil return
In other Tottenham news, former Brazil international Edmundo claims striker Richarlison is on the radar of another club, with the potential of a major transfer being on the cards.
Speaking on his YouTube channel (as relayed by CNN Brasil), Edmundo spoke about the forward as an option for Vasco da Gama.
Indeed, he’s backing his former club to bolster their squad in 2025 and insists Richarlison is on their list.
Meanwhile, Son Heung-min has revealed that he is yet to hold talks with Spurs over a new contract, with his deal set to expire at the end of the season.
While Son’s contract does expire next summer, Tottenham have the option to extend it by another year, which they are reportedly planning to do.
And, speaking ahead of the Qarabag win, the South Korean opened up on his future.