There is no other way to put it: Tottenham Hotspur must find a way to advance. The Europa League has been the priority for some time now, but Ange Postecoglou is at risk of failing in all four competitions this season — which might signal the end of his tenure. There is no excuse for anything less than a victory over AZ Alkmaar at home this Thursday and to progress to the quarterfinals.
Tottenham enters the second leg in North London as favorites, with one of its healthiest squads in recent memory. Yet, nothing has come easy this season, and last week’s disappointing performance in the Netherlands offers little cause for optimism. Even if Spurs make it through this round, the challenges ahead will only get tougher. But it feels like they — and Postecoglou — need something, anything, positive to regain some hope.
Round of 16 (2nd Leg): Tottenham Hotspur (0) vs. AZ Alkmaar (1)
Date: Thursday, March 13
Time: 4:00 pm ET, 8:00 pm UK
Location: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London
TV: Paramount+ (USA), TNT Sports 3 (UK)
Tottenham is fortunate to only be trailing by a single goal heading into the second leg. AZ did not generate much offense (just three shots on target, 39 percent possession, and a mere 1.6 xG), but they took advantage of an unfortunate own goal from Lucas Bergvall. Despite that, the home side always looked more likely to score and earned the result it deserved.
Postecoglou must find a way to create more attacking opportunities. One shot on target in an entire match is a glaring red flag. As troubling is the failure to dominate midfield and apply pressure on AZ’s defense, which is far from impenetrable. While Tottenham has been without a fully-fit No. 9 for much of the season, there are still numerous capable players who can carry the ball into the box and make incisive passes. AZ came into last week’s match having conceded nine goals in their previous three Europa League outings; this is a defense that can be breached.
Though the League Phase tie featured a heavily rotated side, that now makes two contests against this opponent without much to show on the scoreboard. Even though the defense has mostly held up, it is hard to ignore performances against teams like Leicester, Palace, and Ipswich where goals have also been hard to come by. Spurs clearly have an issue scoring against the teams they really should be handling without much difficulty, which is a tough thing to still be saying in March.
Do your job
Tottenham will be without Dejan Kulusevski, arguably their best playmaker, but again, there can be no excuses. Dominic Solanke should be available, and James Maddison must play a key role. Heung-Min Son’s form has been inconsistent, but against Bournemouth, he showed flashes of his former self — enough to suggest he could make a difference this week. And while Bergvall’s own goal was unfortunate, his attacking drive is something few other Spurs players have shown consistently this season.
Ultimately, these players just need to… do their job. Thanks for everyone who has stuck with us the past seven months, and surely you all are sick of hearing the same thing over and over again as well, but what is there even left to say? Spurs have the individual talent and team capability to turn this into a comfortable win, but clearly translating that potential into actual performance has been a struggle.
This is the moment. Tottenham needs to overturn a one-goal deficit against a clearly inferior opponent to keep its hopes alive. The task itself is manageable, but the pressure could not be higher on Postecoglou. Respond, and Spurs move one step closer to glory. Succumb to another Dinamo Zagreb-like catastrophe and this might be the end of the road.
