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LONDON, March 13 (Reuters) - Wilson Odobert's first season at Tottenham Hotspur has been blighted by injury but the French youngster belatedly made his mark with his first goals for the club to send them through to the Europa League quarter-finals on Thursday.

The 20-year-old opened the scoring against Dutch club AZ Alkmaar in the 26th minute and struck again in the 74th minute to seal a 3-1 victory and send Spurs through to the last eight.

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Odobert's second goal from a counter-attack settled the home jitters after his mix-up with team mate Lucas Bergvall allowed AZ's Peer Koopmeiners to level the aggregate score.

It was quite a night for the Paris St Germain academy graduate who joined Tottenham from Burnley in August but who suffered a serious hamstring injury in September that has sidelined him for much of the season.

"Super pleased for him as he's worked awfully hard," manager Ange Postecoglou, whose side will take on Eintracht Frankfurt in the quarter-finals, told reporters.

"I was excited when we signed him. He's just one of these players who has the ability to take people on, find space and is a great technician.

"He came to a new club this year, big club, a big move for him, and it just hasn't worked out with no fault of his own because of his injury. It's been frustrating for me not to be able to showcase him. I know how much he can develop and that's just a starting point for him."

Tottenham were in control when James Maddison made it 2-0 on the night with his 11th goal of the season ion all competitions.

There were a few nerves when AZ pulled a goal back but overall it was a positive night for Tottenham who have been boosted by the return to fitness of players including Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven, Maddison and Dominic Solanke.

"It was a collective effort tonight," Postecoglou said. "I think it's the first time since October we've had our four leaders on the park. (Guglielmo) Vicario, Romero, Maddison and Son (Heung-min). To have all four of them out there, I think makes a difference for us."

What has been a torrid season Tottenham could yet come good with Postecoglou still on course to deliver on his boast of always winning a trophy in his second season at a club.

"I know what we're capable of here and we got the job done," Maddison said. "We haven't achieved anything yet, we're in the quarter-final and we kick on and we look forward to it."

LONDON, March 9 (Reuters) - Europe-chasing Bournemouth were left kicking themselves as they squandered a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 at Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League after outplaying their hosts on Sunday.

Andoni Iraola's side were deservedly two goals up and set to boost their unlikely bid for a Champions League berth after Marcus Tavernier and Evanilson netted either side of halftime.

Pape Matar Sarr threw Tottenham a lifeline with a speculative cross that looped over Bournemouth goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga and Kepa then rashly brought down substitute Son Heung-min with the South Korean converting the resulting penalty in the 84th minute.

Bournemouth, for whom Justin Kluivert had a majestic goal disallowed and hit the post, moved up a place to eighth spot with 44 points, five behind fourth-placed Chelsea, as Tottenham stayed 13th with 34.

If Bournemouth fail to qualify for the first time, they will look back at the last few weeks with bitter memories.

They were knocking on the door of the top four only for defeats by Wolverhampton Wanderers and Brighton & Hove Albion to cost them and they should have bagged all three points against a Tottenham side booed off by their fans at the break.

They had eight shots on target, double the amount of Spurs, but paid for a lack of ruthlessness.

"We should have put some more chances away but going 2-0 up, we have to see the game out Everyone is disappointed in there but we can't dwell on it too much," Tavernier said.

Tottenham's disappointing season hinges on Thursday's Europa League last-16 clash at home to AZ Alkmaar when they will need to overturn a 1-0 deficit.

But they will have to play a lot better than they managed for long periods against Bournemouth.

"At 2-0 we had a bit of a mountain to climb," manager Ange Postecoglou said. "It was a chaotic game today and the boys showed a real mentality."

ROMERO BACK

They welcomed back defender Cristian Romero after a three-month absence and handed him the captaincy but his awful pass after 30 seconds almost gifted Evanilson a goal, his shot superbly saved by Guglielmo Vicario.

Vicario rescued his side again as another error almost led to a Bournemouth goal.

The visitors took the lead in the 42nd minute when yet another misplaced pass by the hosts, this time from Pedro Porro, saw Milos Kerkez surge down the left and produce a sublime cross that a stretching Tavernier volleyed in at the back post.

A sensational counter-attack early in the second half saw Kluivert finish in style from Tavernier's cross but a VAR check showed that Antoine Semenya was offside in the build-up and what would have been one of the goals of the season was ruled out.

Evanilson did double Bournemouth's lead with a deft finish from Kluivert's astute pass and the visitors were cruising.

Impressive substitute Lucas Bergvall struck the post for Spurs before Sarr's errant cross which floated over a flailing Kepa's head changed the complexion of the game.

Even then Bournemouth were still the more accomplished side but Kepa's eager rush form his goal saw him take down Son who calmly tucked away the spot-kick.

"We need to be more efficient because big teams find a way to win," Iraola said. "We have to be demanding with ourselves. It's shame not to get the points we deserve."

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LONDON, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Tottenham Hotspur midfielder James Maddison's early goal was enough for his side to end a barren home run in the Premier League by beating fellow strugglers Manchester United 1-0 in an entertaining clash on Sunday.

Maddison, back in the starting lineup after injury, tapped in a rebound from close range after 13 minutes to settle a contest in which both sides showed their frailties.

Tottenham's first home league win for 105 days eased the pressure on their Australian manager Ange Postecoglou with his team moving above United into 12th place with 30 points.

United manager Ruben Amorim's tough start to life at Old Trafford continues though and the Portuguese has now lost eight of the 14 Premier League matches since he took charge.

His side dropped to 15th with 29 points as they became the first United outfit to suffer defeats in a league double against Spurs since the 1989-90 season.

It was another underwhelming display by the visitors although they did have their chances with Alejandro Garnacho wasting a golden opportunity in the first half.

"I am not worried. I understand our fans, what the media think about it. I hate to lose, that feeling is the worst," Amorim said. "I am confident in my work. The place in the table is my worry, I am not worried about me."

Tottenham's injury list is finally shrinking and Postecoglou welcomed back first-choice goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario and playmaker Maddison into his starting team while Destiny Udogie, Wilson Odobert and Brennan Johnson were all on the bench.

In contrast, United's woes worsened this week with the news that the versatile Amad Diallo, one of their few bright sparks this season, is likely to be out for the rest of the campaign.

United's starting lineup was complemented by a bench resembling a youth team with nine of them aged 19 or under.

PRE-MATCH PROTEST

The Spurs fans staged a pre-match protest against Chairman Daniel Levy's running of the club and while one victory will not cure the side's troubles, it was a step in the right direction after they tumbled out of both domestic cups last week.

"It was important we won today," Postecoglou said. "We've had it pretty tough for the past two and a half months.

"We feel, and I certainly feel, there's a massive opportunity in the back half of the year."

There are still 13 Premier League games left this season, while Spurs and United are Europa League favourites.

United had the first big chance in the game on Sunday with Rasmus Hojlund forcing a sharp save from Vicario who then reacted well to keep out Garnacho's follow-up.

Tottenham took the lead when Son Heung-min's volleyed cross fell to Lucas Bergvall whose shot was clawed away by Andre Onana into the path of Maddison who converted from close range.

Garnacho should have equalised soon after but lifted his shot well over the bar with the goal at his mercy.

Spurs' new signing Mathys Tel struggled up front and should have done better from a Djed Spence cross.

The fragile nature of Tottenham's lead induced some nerves in the home ranks and United began to grow in belief.

Garnacho forced two fine saves from Vicario who looked confident in his first game for nearly three months while Joshua Zirkzee wastefully glanced a header wide of the target.

Spurs held their lead though as they enjoyed consecutive Premier League clean sheets for the first time in 16 months.

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Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Ken Ferris

Jan 29 (Reuters) - Tottenham Hotspur have been handed a boost with the return of centre back Micky van de Ven in training after the Dutchman recovered from a hamstring injury, the Premier League club said on Tuesday.

The 23-year-old Netherlands international was out of action since picking up the injury in Spurs' 4-3 home loss in the London derby against Chelsea early in December.

Spurs, who have won just once in 11 Premier League matches and sit 15th of 20 teams, have been dealing with a lengthy injury list that includes goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario, centre back Cristian Romero as well as striker Dominic Solanke, among others.

Spurs next host Swedish side IF Elfsborg in the Europa League on Thursday.

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Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru; Editing by Kim Coghill

Jan 27 (Reuters) - Tottenham Hotspur captain Son Heung-min bemoaned his team's lack of concentration in their 2-1 home loss to Leicester City on Sunday and said they are trying to block out the noise amid a woeful run of form.

Leicester came from a goal down to beat Spurs and heap more pressure on the North London side's manager Ange Postecoglou, who has been dealing with a lengthy injury list that includes goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario, centre backs Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven and striker Dominic Solanke.

Spurs have won just once in 11 Premier League matches and sit 15th of 20 teams.

"It is very painful. What can I say? Especially when you're winning at half-time and conceding two goals in a short period of time. It let us down and is a very frustrating afternoon," Son told the BBC.

"We can't just say tiredness because we just came out of the second half. Maybe it was a little bit sloppy, it is not individual mistakes ... It is just a lack of concentration and a bit of sloppiness and in the Premier League table any team can punish us.

"We try to block any outside noise out of the squad and group. We just want to get as many points as possible. There is still a lot of games to play, we want to get players back and experienced players and that will be very helpful."

Spurs next host Swedish side IF Elfsborg in the Europa League on Thursday.

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Jan 16 (Reuters) - Arsenal's 18-year-old left back Myles Lewis-Skelly was thrown into the deep end against Tottenham Hotspur, one of the Premier League's most goal-hungry teams, but the teenager passed with flying colours in an uplifting derby victory.

With three senior defenders out injured, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta was forced to turn to Lewis-Skelly to fill in at the back even though the player came up through the academy as a midfielder.

Arsenal were at their lowest ebb this season following back-to-back losses in the League Cup and FA Cup, and Spurs represented a serious test with Ange Postecoglou's side averaging more than two goals a game in the league.

Lewis-Skelly became the second-youngest Arsenal player to feature in a league derby against Spurs but he hardly seemed overawed by the occasion.

Instead, he embraced the pressure with the club's season potentially on the line if they fell further behind.

Within two minutes of kickoff, Lewis-Skelly showed his attacking capabilities when he made an interception high up the pitch, dribbled through the midfield and nearly provided an assist for Raheem Sterling, who was denied by the onrushing goalkeeper.

The left back also had to contend with Spurs' imperious winger Dejan Kulusevski but he showed the maturity, composure and strength to deal with everything Spurs threw down his flank, and Arteta praised his 'phenomenal' performance.

"It's very rare to see, 18-years-old, playing against Kulusevski and (Brennan) Johnson in a big London derby for the first time, to perform with that composure, with that attitude and control emotionally," Arteta told reporters.

"He makes everybody at the club very proud. He has been in our system for a long time... With him, he was ready very early and in a different position. He has never played as a full back before."

'BUILT IN A LAB'

Four months ago, Lewis-Skelly made his debut in stoppage time in a feisty draw at Manchester City where he famously squared up with Erling Haaland, with the Norwegian not mincing words when he asked the youngster who he was.

But his performances in recent games have put Lewis-Skelly on the map and teammate Declan Rice, who said the player was "built in a lab", praised his performance in the 2-1 win.

"For 18 years of age to be playing how he is... it is just ridiculous. The young players now have no fear, none whatsoever," Rice said, adding that Lewis-Skelly could play for England soon.

"Four or five times in the second half he used his body to get away from someone. He has that Moussa Dembele type strength."

Lewis-Skelley came off to a standing ovation in the 87th minute and the smiling youngster was encouraging the home crowd to raise the volume as Arsenal moved up to second and within four points of leaders Liverpool to reignite the title race.

"I'm feeling every emotion possible, I'm on cloud nine... I was a kid watching the derbies and know how much it means to the fans, it's everything. To experience it today, I can't stop smiling," he said.

"This game means more... I'm happy I helped the team. The most important thing was getting the three points, building momentum and I'm happy with how I played."

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Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Kate Mayberry

LONDON, Jan 15 (Reuters) - Ange Postecoglou described Tottenham Hotspur's dismal Premier League campaign as unacceptable after they slumped to a lame 2-1 defeat at north London rivals Arsenal on Wednesday.

Son Heung-min gave Tottenham a 25th-minute lead against the run of play but in the end the scoreline flattered Postecoglou's side who have now won only once in nine league games.

Tottenham sit 13th in the table on 24 points and are now far closer to the relegation zone than the top four where they had hoped to be challenging in Postecoglou's second season.

While they have reached the League Cup semi-final and won the first leg 1-0 against Liverpool, they have lost 11 league games this season. Injuries have been a factor, but Postecoglou made no attempt to sugar-coat the current predicament which is inevitably raising questions about his future.

"Not good enough, especially the first half. We just were way too passive. We allowed Arsenal to take control of the game and dictate the tempo and paid the price," Postecoglou told reporters. "That's just not who we are.

"It's not the way I set the team up. It's not the way I want to play, to be sitting in there and allowing Arsenal to play. The tempo just wasn't good enough."

Postecoglou's team offered little against Arsenal who led by halftime with a Dominic Solanke own goal and Leandro Trossard's left-footed drive -- both goals not making happy viewing for Tottenham's new keeper Antonin Kinsky.

The former Celtic manager said there was no "magic cure" and called on his players to battle to turn around their league form, starting away at struggling Everton at the weekend.

Lose that and the north Londoners could even start looking over their shoulders at the relegation zone.

"I want them (the players) disappointed. This can't be accepted by anyone at the club," Postecoglou, whose side are now winless in five league games, said.

"Losing so many games in the league season is not right. I know we've gone through a tough time, and yes, we are asking big jobs, but I hope they're hurting. The reality of it is that our results and our form in the league have been nowhere near good enough. That needs to change."

Tottenham captain Son, who was substituted during the second half, echoed Postecoglou's thoughts.

"Very disappointing. The manager is right. We were too passive. Second half was a little better. The first half was not good enough," the South Korean, who has now scored eight Premier League goals against Arsenal, said.

"We have to do better in every aspect. When you look at the table it's not good enough."

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