Tottenham Hotspur have qualified for the semi-finals of the Europa League after their win over Eintracht Frankfurt.
Spurs fans haven’t had a lot to cheer about this season. Their form in the Premier League has been abysmal, and they crashed out of the two domestic cups in disappointing fashion as well.
The Europa League has been their only hope in recent months, and their tie against Frankfurt was in the balance after the first leg ended 1-1.
Ange Postecoglou was desperate to win the game, and James Maddison heroically winning a penalty made the difference in the end.
But, what happened in the aftermath of that foul ‘surprised’ the Tottenham manager.
Ange Postecoglou says one referee decision ‘surprised’ him during Eintracht Frankfurt vs Tottenham
Tottenham had to win the game against Eintracht Frankfurt to save their season.
Postecoglou’s comments on always winning a trophy in his second campaign have been used against him plenty of times already, and the Australian was desperate to prove a point.
Spurs weren’t at their vintage best, but they managed to get the job done after Dominic Solanke calmly converted the penalty that Maddison won.
The midfielder was in a lot of pain after Kaua Santos crashed into him. He was taken off soon after the penalty and was replaced by Dejan Kulusevski.
After the game, Postecoglou confirmed that Maddison will be fine, but he claimed that he was surprised to see the Frankfurt goalkeeper stay on the pitch.
He said, as per Football London: “He is fine. Unbelievable courage in that moment to put his body on the line knowing full well that he was going to get a pretty severe knock and I was surprised it wasn’t a red card.
“Super courageous from him. He is sore, but I’m sure that has all been numbed knowing that he has helped us progress to the semi.”
Postecoglou also added: “We can be facetious about that, but I thought it was a clear penalty. I’m not sure why it needed VAR.
“When a player wins the ball and gets cleaned out, if that was a defender it definitely would probably have been a red card. It’s definitely a penalty. I don’t think it needed a review. Again, I think we got what we deserved.”
Tottenham’s road to winning the Europa League explained
Tottenham have made it into the semi-finals of the Europa League.
Even though Spurs have been really poor this season, it has to be said that they are one of the favourites to win the competition now.
Spurs take on Bodo/Glimt in the semi-finals over two legs. If Postecoglou’s men get past them, they will face one of Manchester United or Athletic Bilbao in the final of the competition.
United have been as poor as Spurs this season, but Athletic Club are fourth in La Liga and have lost just two games in the Europa League this term.
The Spanish side will likely be the more difficult opponent for Tottenham if they make it into the final, but there’s no reason why Spurs can’t beat them.
