One of the border control officers at Frankfurt airport joked to a group of reporters that every Tottenham Hotspur fan he met on Wednesday was pessimistic about their chances of beating Eintracht Frankfurt in the quarter-finals of the Europa League.
This has been a wretched season for Spurs. They have lost more than half of their games in the Premier League and were thrashed by Liverpool in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final. The supporters were travelling to Germany with a sense of moral duty rather than hope of watching their team progress.
They were rewarded with a 1-0 win for a 2-1 aggregate victory and the reality is, apart from a manic five-minute spell at the end of Thursday night’s game, they were uncharacteristically mature and defensively solid across both legs.
Frankfurt failed to score at home for the first time since a goalless draw with Union Berlin in March 2024. Spurs have beaten top-quality opposition for the first time since a 1-0 victory over Liverpool in January.
All of the emotions came pouring out at full time. Ange Postecoglou was mobbed by his coaching staff and goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario charged across the pitch and jumped on them. Richarlison ran onto the pitch from the substitutes bench, unsure who to congratulate first.
Postecoglou gave Dominic Solanke, who scored the decisive goal, a huge hug while the rest of the squad lapped up the applause from the fans. It is the first time they have been united in months and Postecoglou had a rare smile etched across his face. That Spurs won without their injured captain Son Heung-min makes it even more impressive.
Tottenham’s coaching staff all jumped on Postecoglou at the full-time whistle and then Vicario ran over too pic.twitter.com/nqBR2pe3ON
— Jay Harris (@jaydmharris) April 17, 2025
Postecoglou walked down the tunnel with his arm around his injured hero James Maddison. The England international won the penalty which Solanke converted after being clattered in the head by goalkeeper Kaua Santos. Maddison tried to keep playing but had to be substituted before half-time. Postecoglou praised the midfielder’s “unbelievable courage” and said he was “sore” but fine.
If Postecoglou’s style of play is all about dominating possession and pushing high up the pitch, then this performance was the opposite. Frankfurt had 61 per cent of the ball and in the first half constantly whipped crosses into the box. They had multiple set pieces and Vicario was forced to make a couple of saves. In the 15th minute, Santos launched a goal kick straight down the middle which appeared to present Hugo Ekitike with a one-on-one with Vicario. Micky van de Ven produced a fantastic tackle to prevent the France Under-21 international from scoring.
There was a heroic block from Lucas Bergvall to deny Ekitike in the second half too. Bergvall’s main quality is driving forward with the ball but it was remarkable how many times he tracked back to cut out a cross.
The best player on the pitch though was Destiny Udogie. The Italy left-back has struggled during his second season with Spurs. Udogie missed two months of action with a hamstring injury and his replacement Djed Spence shone. Spence put forward a strong case to become first choice with his attacking and defensive contributions. Udogie impressed in the first leg against Frankfurt but was even better in Germany.
Mathys Tel started on the left wing because of Son’s foot injury. Tel was struggling to dribble past Rasmus Kristensen but every time he lost the ball, Udogie was there to help win it back. Udogie kept making dangerous overlapping runs and created a fantastic opportunity for Brennan Johnson to score in the 66th minute, only for Arthur Theate made an interception. In the final few seconds of the game, he wisely dribbled towards the corner instead of giving in to the temptation to pass the ball to a team-mate in a goalscoring position. This was only the second time since October that Udogie, Pedro Porro, Van de Ven, Vicario and Cristian Romero started together. Reuniting that quintet has given Spurs a massive boost.
It has felt over the last two years as if Postecoglou is unwilling to bend on any of his beliefs but there were signs against Frankfurt that he has learned from his mistakes. He resisted the urge to call Wilson Odobert and Richarlison off the bench in search of an extra goal. He replaced his two wingers, Tel and Johnson, with Pape Sarr and Kevin Danso. Sarr was an extra body in midfield while Danso forged a back three with Van de Ven and Romero. Vicario seemed to take longer than usual with his goal kicks. Postecoglou’s side managed the game differently.
This is a significant moment in Tottenham’s season and Postecoglou’s reign. If they had lost, his position would have been untenable. Now they face Norway’s Bodo/Glimt for a place in the Europa League final in Bilbao on May 21. Despite all of the difficulties Spurs have encountered, including a lengthy injury list, they have reached the semi-finals of two different cup competitions. There is uncertainty over Postecoglou’s long-term future but he could win Spurs their first trophy since 2008.
“We can’t get too far ahead of ourselves,” the manager said. “We’re in the semi-final and will play a difficult opponent but it’s not about my belief in the team. What’s more important is the belief the team has had because after a season like ours, it would be very easy for the players and staff, they could have left me in a pretty vulnerable place in terms of them splintering, but I’ve never felt that (even) with all the noise around. They’ve been so united in believing in what we’re trying to achieve and that is what gave me heart all along, that if we got our own slice of luck in terms of getting some players back that I really believed this team could achieve.
“That is what keeps driving me. It isn’t so much my belief in them, it’s their belief in what we’re doing and both players and staff have been outstanding. I am the front man for it but they take responsibility for it as well and all my decisions and everything I do, but not at any stage have I felt they lost any belief in me or what we’re doing. That is crucial when you’re having a difficult season, but there is also a season of opportunity there.”
Postecoglou’s happiness and relief was clear to see but he could not resist taking a shot at the media with the last line of his post-match press conference.
“I am the same manager today that I was yesterday, so if people think us winning tonight makes me a better manager or whoever thinks I wasn’t doing a good job yesterday, should be feeling the same way,” he said. “I don’t care, it doesn’t bother me, it doesn’t affect what I do. For me, it’s always about the dressing room. Do the players believe? Do the staff believe? That’s much more important than what others may make of me. So, unfortunately, for a lot of you, you’re going to have to put up with me for a little bit longer, mate, so let’s see how that goes.”
This could have been Postecoglou’s final game in charge with last weekend’s comical defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers only darkening the mood. The presence of technical director Johan Lange and chief football officer Scott Munn at Wednesday’s open training session seemed to add to the tension.
Everything was on the line and Postecoglou managed the situation perfectly. In September he reminded everybody that he “always” wins a trophy in his second season with a club. Postecoglou has taken a giant step towards achieving success.
(Top photo: Postecoglou celebrates with his staff and players at full-time. Alex Grimm/Getty Images)
