BODØ, Norway — Ange Postecoglou had barely taken his seat at his unveiling as Tottenham Hotspur manager almost two years ago when he was first asked about that painful, cursed word: “Spursy.”
He made a promise that day that he would put an end to it. Now, as he is reportedly headed to the exit door no matter what he achieves from here, Postecoglou has guided Spurs to the UEFA Europa League final in a fashion that can only be described as anything but “Spursy.”
Take down a wholly beatable Manchester United side, and maybe it will be much harder to label them with that tag.
You’d be forgiven for rolling your eyes — it’s an easy headline grabber, sure — but this really was everything Spurs are not supposed to do. By winning the second leg 2-0 (5-1 on aggregate), he didn’t give rivals any excuse to poke at old wounds, to make Spurs the butt of the joke.
“That [result] is going to upset a lot of people,” Postecoglou said.
“There’ll be debates now raging and neither of us [United and Tottenham] will be able to get a trophy. If we win, we’re just going to take a team photo because we’re not worthy.
“Who cares if we’re struggling in the league? Why is that important? If it’s so easy to get to a final, then why doesn’t everyone who finishes in the top three do it? I mean, it’s a separate thing. It’s got nothing to do with league form.
This game had the makings of a perfect upset story. Picture the scene: Premier League giants Spurs playing away in the Arctic Circle against minnows Bodø/Glimt, who have lost just one home game in Europe all season. Harder still, they had won 27 of their last 34 when welcoming teams from the continent. Those victims include FC Porto, Celtic, and AS Roma (then coached by Jose Mourinho).
Between the artificial turf, the freezing temperatures and the tiny cauldron of an atmosphere, this is a fortress that few teams escape unscathed. Yet, Spurs handled business.
“They [the players] were well-prepared tonight and they executed it perfectly,” Postecoglou said.
“It’s been chronicled over the last few days that this is a difficult place to come to. I thought the lads just handled it really well as they have throughout this sort of game, particularly the knockout stages and credit to them.”
Spurs set up defensively and sucked the life out of the game. They were largely unremarkable in the first half as if by design. There was no need to put on a show with a 3-1 advantage from the first leg. This was about getting in and getting out. No drama allowed. There were not many chances to speak for either side. It was clean and professional.
Then, just after the hour mark, Spurs struck twice to end the tie and book their place in the final. Striker Dominic Solanke scrambled in a Cristian Romero header in the 63rd minute, and right-back Pedro Porro then deceived goalkeeper Nikita Haikin with a cross that looped in to spark celebrations from the few hundred away fans.
It is worth noting that Thursday night’s display was not in isolation. Postecoglou, who has at times been accused of willfully encouraging a chaotic, risky attacking system, has instead set out to be pragmatic. It’s been a theme of their second-leg knockout games. Against AZ Alkmaar in the Round of 16, they overturned a 1-0 deficit with a 3-1 win in the return leg. Against Eintracht Frankfurt in the quarters, Spurs put together a gritty, professional performance and won 1-0.
In Bodø, the clean sheet was as impressive as the victory. According to ESPN Global Research, Bodø/Glimt have scored in every single home game in all competitions since October 2023.
Postecoglou is already on record saying he feels like Spurs have led “parallel” lives between a European run and their worst Premier League campaign since 1994, which sees them 16th in the table.
The Australian coach was quick to hit back at anyone suggesting that their league form would diminish this achievement. He said he didn’t care one bit about what the league table said: If Spurs can end their 17-year trophy drought, then it is a successful season.
“What’s happening right now is that people are fearing that it actually might happen because it might happen,” Postecoglou said.
“Let’s see how we can tear it down, somehow diminish it by saying that it’s been a poor season and we don’t deserve this or we don’t deserve that. Or somehow comparing us to Manchester United.
“If we had United’s success, maybe I’d have a different view. I could have been sitting here exactly in fifth position [in the Premier League] and I guarantee you that the commentary around me would be, well, that’s a great achievement, but this club needs to win something.
“That’s exactly what everyone would be saying. Of course, this [making a European final] is massive.”
Postecoglou and Spurs will take confidence in the fact they have already beaten United three times this season — twice in the league as well as a frenetic 4-3 victory in the Carabao Cup quarterfinals in December.
That brings us back to “Spursy.”
It was in that Carabao Cup clash that Spurs were anything but assured. They were leading 3-0 in the 54th minute and somehow threw it away and were drawing 3-3 half an hour later. It took a remarkable “Olimpico” goal from captain Son Heung-Min to get the victory that day. Spurs found a way to win, and yet still they didn’t quite earn much respect.
Postecoglou is right when he says that Spurs are an easy target for others to aim at, and it is wrong to diminish this achievement. Making a European final is no easy feat.
His mission is to demand, as it was almost two years ago, is to garner true respect. He knows that will only come by winning a trophy at the end of this. Maybe it would even help him deliver on a promise to put to bed that painful tag, just like he always said he would.
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