Postecoglou may have rescued his Tottenham career in Frankfurt
A historic win for Tottenham
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Dan Kilpatrick @ Dan_KP2 minutes ago
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Dominic Solanke’s penalty earned Tottenham a 1-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt in their Europa League quarter-final decider to save Ange Postecoglou’s job and maintain their hopes of ending the season with silverware.
Solanke coolly converted from the spot in the 43rd-minute after goalkeeper Kaua Santos clattered James Maddison, and Spurs produced a spirited second-half rearguard to seal a 2-1 win on aggregate.
Spurs will now face Bodo/Glimt in the semi-final for a chance to reach Bilbao on May 21.
Here are three Spurs talking points from Deutsche Bank Park…
Postecoglou’s project alive and kicking
Reports of Postecoglou’s demise may have been greatly exaggerated.
This result kept Spurs’ season alive and will change the narrative around Postecoglou, allowing the head coach to get back on the front foot after a spell in which he has appeared increasingly besieged by a run of poor results and the swirling speculation about his future.
After all, Spurs are now two games from a European final, suggesting this can still be not just a successful season, but a historic and transformative one.
Postecoglou seems to have extended his stay in North London
Bradley Collyer/PA Wire
There will be no more serious talk about Postecoglou losing his job before the semi-final, even if they continue to slump in the Premier League, and the Australian will now sense a chance to earn a third year in charge by delivering the silverware Spurs have long craved – and fulfilling his promise to win something in his second season.
And the manner of Spurs’ performance in a deafening atmosphere at Deutsche Bank Park suggests Postecoglou’s side have the quality and nerve to go all the way in Bilbao on May 21.
The visitors grew into the game after a jittery start and had found their feet by the time Maddison was taken out by Santos for a stonewall penalty.
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In the second half, Spurs played with real maturity, restricting Frankfurt to glimpses of goal and looking a threat on the counter-attack.
Cristian Romero and Rodrigo Bentancur both missed big headers from Pedro Porro’s corners to double their lead, underlining that Spurs had much the better openings over the two legs of the tie.
The final ten minutes were a little nervy, with Spurs defending the edge of their box with three centre-backs on the pitch, but to a man, they were resilient, dogged and committed.
They stood up to the challenge of preserving their narrow lead, putting their bodies on the line to eke out a huge result when the stakes could not have been higher for club or the manager.
Dominic Solanke’s penalty made the difference for Tottenham
Bradley Collyer/PA Wire
Spurs take the fight to Frankfurt in ferocious atmosphere
Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Spurs’ display was the way they took the fight to Frankfurt in a ferociously loud atmosphere.
Their spirit was epitomised by their celebration after the winning goal, when Solanke raced over to savour the moment in front of the Frankfurt ultras behind the goal in what felt like a show of defiance.
The way Postecoglou's young side scrapped for every ball without their injured talisman and captain Heung-min Son was hugely encouraging and arguably uncharacteristic.
Led by the excellent Romero, Spurs were physical and fiery without crossing a line. The Argentine, Brennan Johnson and Bentancur were among the players to fly into big challenges, showing they were not cowed by the deafening home fans.
Spurs will need to adjust their approach for the semi-final, though, where Bodo/Glimt’s plastic pitch will pose a different kind of challenge.
Spurs' attitude in Germany suggests they have matured from the side which looked so fearful at Galatasaray and Rangers in the initial phase and were so meek in the 1-0 defeat in AZ Alkmaar in the last round.
Postecoglou’s big calls come off
The head coach’s XI largely picked itself, but Postecoglou’s two big calls were vindicated on the night.
Many Spurs fans would have preferred to see Djed Spence ahead of Destiny Udogie at left-back, but the Italian produced his best performance of the campaign, at least from an attacking point of view.
Udogie took up a number of dangerous positions down the left and helped to relieve the pressure in the second half with some bursts forward with the ball, looking back to his physically imposing best.
Ahead of him, the decision to bring in Mathys Tel for Son was also justified as the Frenchman produced his liveliest performance in a Tottenham shirt on his return to Germany.
Tel went close to breaking the deadlock with a 25-yard strike which was well-saved by Santos and was constantly looking to make things happen, suggesting his loan spell from Bayern Munich could yet be a major success.
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