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5 days ago
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Who are you and what person you done with Ange Postecoglou? There was a messy extremity from a acceptable piece, different from a mishit cross, a program with pragmatism astatine its halfway and a squad capable to find quality successful the benignant of disfigured show that has truthful often near Postecoglou cold.
All the chill came from Tottenham Hotspur successful the Arctic Circle. They were robust alternatively than flimsy connected the infamous integrative transportation astatine the Aspmyra Stadium, superior alternatively than spectacular, and they did not caput turning this Europa League semi-final against punchy, determined Bodo/Glimt into a grind. Postecoglou, the manager with supposedly nary hint however to termination a game, came up trumps. Spurs were dogged, streetwise and astute successful unpleasant conditions successful bluish Norway and, aft a play of specified strife successful the Premier League, their reward is an all-English last against Manchester United aboriginal this month.
Europe remains a sanctuary for Postecoglou’s team. They person been erratic and chaotic domestically but they person summoned resilience successful this competition. Bodø/Glimt ne'er had anticipation of a comeback. Kjetil Knutsen’s broadside were outmuscled by stronger, sharper opponents. Spurs roseate to the challenge, goals from Dominic Solanke and Pedro Porro capable for them to triumph 2-0 connected the nighttime and 5-1 connected aggregate. Adversity has brought retired the champion successful them. Postecoglou has been ridiculed this play but vindication is wrong scope for the Spurs manager, adjacent if determination is rising speculation that the Australian volition beryllium sacked adjacent if helium secures Champions League qualification by beating United successful Bilbao.
Maybe this volition beryllium a healing moment, though. There were joyous scenes astatine afloat time, the Spurs players surging crossed the transportation to observe with the 404 hardy souls successful the distant end, and determination is simply a accidental that the memories created by this tally could repair Postecoglou’s narration with the fanbase. Who knows however overmuch winning a trophy could alteration this troubled club’s self-image? Plenty of people, aft all, had tipped them to messiness up this tie. Even the locals thought that Spurs had not built up a large capable pb successful the archetypal leg.
This remote, windswept Arctic outpost had ne'er experienced thing rather this momentous before. The sprinklers were connected agelong earlier kick-off, drenching a aboveground already designed to play quickly. The rainfall fell too, heightening the consciousness that this spot is designed to travel up unsuspecting visitors. It was casual to spot wherefore Porto, Besiktaş, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Twente, Olympiakos and Lazio had already near this quirky small crushed empty-handed this season.
Buoyed by the instrumentality of the influential duo of Patrick Berg and Håkon Evjen from suspension successful midfield, Bodø/Glimt believed a 3-1 shortage would beryllium wiped out. Reality soon intruded connected the fairytale. Spurs were archetypal to settle, with Richarlison causing problems for Fredrik Sjøvold connected the left, and were closing to pulling wide erstwhile Porro astir curled a free-kick past Nikita Haikin successful the ninth minute.
Knutsen admitted that Spurs were successful complaint from the start. Postecolgou was delighted with his side’s pressing. It was six years to the time since Spurs pulled disconnected their miraculous comeback against Ajax successful the semi-finals of the Champions League but this was much sedate. Richarlison continued to threaten, Solanke’s hold-up play was awesome and determination was an flight for the hosts erstwhile Destiny Udogie failed to find anyone aft sneaking done connected the left.
Calm and professional, Spurs were utilizing the shot well, adjacent with injuries stripping their midfield of the poise offered by James Maddison and Lucas Bergvall. Dejan Kulusveski, Maddison’s replacement, disrupted Bodø/Glimt’s attempts to play retired from the back. Yves Bissouma and Rodrigo Bentancur mopped up successful beforehand of the backmost four. The lone misstep came erstwhile Brennan Johnson picked up a booking for a clumsy challenge.
Bodø/Glimt were excessively frantic. Ole Didrik Blomberg fired into the side-netting and Berg forced Guglielmo Vicario to extremity a free-kick implicit but determination was not overmuch to interest Spurs earlier half-time.
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The funny happening is that Postecoglou has not hesitated to dispense with his idealistic attack successful Europe. Spurs person sat backmost and been much nonstop against continental opposition, peculiarly connected their travels. Ruggedness was a salient diagnostic of their quarter-final triumph implicit Eintracht Frankfurt and they did a akin occupation connected Bodø/Glimt. It was not agelong earlier Maurizio Mariano, the Italian referee, was informing Vicario astir timewasting earlier a goal-kick.
Spurs, 16th successful the league, were unperturbed. Diligent and disciplined, they led successful the 64th minute. Mathys Tel, who had conscionable replaced Richarlison, delivered a corner, Cristian Romero won the archetypal header and Solanke bundled the shot successful from adjacent range.
Bodø/Glimt, the archetypal Norwegian broadside to spell this acold successful Europe, knew it was a mislaid cause. The 2nd extremity soon arrived, Porro’s transverse catching Haikin retired of position. Postecoglou’s committedness astir ever winning a trophy successful his 2nd play looks progressively convincing.
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