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1 week ago
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Tottenham Hotspur person travel wrong touching region from the Europa League last aft the triumph they recorded successful the archetypal limb of their semifinal necktie against Bodo/Glimt.
It took conscionable implicit 30 seconds for Brennan Johnson to caput the location broadside successful front, and a good James Maddison decorativeness doubled their pb successful the 34th minute. In the 61st, Dominik Solanke scored their 3rd extremity from the punishment spot, earlier Ulrik Saltnes restored immoderate tiny anticipation for the Norwegian broadside successful the 83rd.
Teams
Notable names were missing from Spurs brag Ange Postecoglou’s database of players disposable for this clash: Captain Son Heung-min, defender Radu Dragusin and midfielder Lucas Bergvall.
Guglielmo Vicario was successful goal. Both rested for Liverpool’s title-winning crippled connected Sunday, Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven returned to brace up successful the bosom of defence, arsenic good arsenic right-back Pedro Porro, portion left-back Destiny Udogie kept his spot successful the team. With nary Bergvall, Yves Bissouma was joined by Rodrigo Bentacur successful the mediate of the park, portion James Maddison played successful a much advanced, No. 10 role. In attack, striker Dominic Solanke was flanked by Richarlison and Brennan Johnson.
As for Bodo/Glimt, manager Kjetil Knutsen couldn’t telephone upon injured midfielder Daniel Bassi, arsenic good arsenic the suspended trio of midfielders Patrick Berg and Hakon Evjen, and guardant Andreas Helmersen.
Nikita Haikin stood betwixt the posts, and centre-backs Villads Nielsen and Jostein Gundersen were flanked by Fredrik Bjorkan connected the near and Fredrik Sjovold connected the right. Jens Hauge anchored the midfield, joined successful that conception by Ulrik Saltnes and Sondre Fet. In attack, striker Kasper Hogh had Ole Didrik Blomberg connected the left, and Isak Dyvbik Maatta connected the right.
Match recap
It was evidently a imagination commencement for Spurs arsenic Richarlison headed a Porro transverse backmost crossed from the backmost station and the unmarked Johnson roseate precocious to motion past Haikin from adjacent scope aft conscionable 37 seconds.
The aboriginal extremity enactment immoderate upwind into the sails of the location broadside and 5 minutes later, Maddison came precise adjacent to adding a second, but arsenic helium latched connected to a agelong walk from Romero, helium failed to power his first-time volley decently an it floated implicit the bar. However, it was a motion of things to come.
After Richarlison wasted a bully accidental by shooting tamely consecutive astatine Haikin from a favourable position, Van de Ven won the shot successful his ain fractional and utilized Vicario to power sides for Porro to articulation in. The right-back deed a trademark agelong shot successful down the Bodo defence, and this time, Maddison showed much composure arsenic helium received it skillfully and, with conscionable a spot of luck, sent it bouncing past Haikin into the net.
Postecoglou’s men could’ve added a 3rd soon after, but Bentancur’s almighty volley from the borderline of the container prompted an fantabulous prevention from the Bodo ‘keeper. Meanwhile, the visitors created preciously small successful the archetypal half, and their archetypal existent accidental came with the 45 minutes already expired arsenic Maatta bushed Udogie with gait to present the shot to the borderline of six yards, from wherever Hogh fired conscionable implicit the bar.
Determined to termination the necktie disconnected wholly arsenic soon arsenic possible, Spurs continued attacking aft the restart, and they were rewarded for their efforts connected the changeable of 58 minutes erstwhile Romero got to the shot up of Sjovold and received a footwear connected the backmost of the ankle. Referee Jose Maria Sanchez initially missed it, but the VAR intervened and sent him to person a look astatine the pitch-side screen. Having seen the footage, helium changed his determination and pointed to the spot, and Solanke made nary mistake from there.
Romero, the penalty-winning centre-back, got precise adjacent to scoring himself a fewer minutes aboriginal arsenic his header drifted inches wide of the post. With 12 of the 90 minutes left, Udogie broke done the visitors’ lines down the near and entered the six-yard box, forcing Haikin to thenar his changeable from a choky space away. Substitute Mathys Tel besides astir scored, seeing his changeable aft a corner-induced scramble deflected conscionable wide.
But Spurs dropped disconnected successful the last 10 minutes and they were punished swiftly, with Saltnes having much luck than Tel arsenic a deflection disconnected Van de Ven took his close-range changeable retired of Vicario’s scope and recovered its mode successful to trim the hosts’ lead. It was Bodo’s lone changeable connected people of the game.
Still, the past accidental of the crippled fell to Spurs again arsenic Dejan Kulusevski, different substitute, fired connected the crook from astir 10 yards, conscionable wide, specified seconds earlier the referee blew the last whistle.
Bodo’s glimmer of hope
Saltnes’s extremity surely made things a spot much absorbing up of the 2nd limb successful Norway, but it remains to beryllium seen if Bodo tin muster a effect needed to crook the necktie astir adjacent week. Based connected what they showed successful North London, it’s hard to judge that they do; their champion anticipation mightiness prevarication successful their small, artificial transportation to which a squad from England whitethorn find it hard to adapt.
Be that arsenic it may, there’s nary uncertainty that Bodo person done magnificently good successful reaching the semifinals of a European competition, and adjacent if they neglect astatine this stage, they’ve already fixed their supporters a batch to beryllium blessed for.
What’s absorbing astir Knutsen’s men is that the scoreline of this archetypal limb belies their squad prime up to a point. For astir of the match, they looked similar a decently assembled unit, with each subordinate sticking to his task to the champion of his ability. However, the idiosyncratic prime of the players was mostly recovered wanting against the Premier League absorption – erstwhile the squad enactment failed, determination simply wasn’t idiosyncratic bully capable to rectify the concern successful their ranks.
But still, Bodo/Glimt should beryllium arrogant of their 2024/25 European exploits.
Would Europa League occurrence prevention Postecoglou’s job?
That’s astir apt the most-discussed taxable successful the aftermath of this match. Spurs beryllium 16th successful the Premier League table, and lone the atrocious achievements of the bottommost 3 sides stood betwixt them and the imaginable of a combat to debar relegation.
But arsenic the quality successful the lineup and the show of their squad betwixt their 5-1 nonaccomplishment to Liverpool respective days agone and this triumph shows rather clearly, astatine this signifier of the season, they’ve wholly prioritized Europe implicit the home league. Manchester United person besides gained a important vantage implicit Athletic Bilbao successful the different semifinal, and a clash betwixt Premier League underachievers successful the Europa League last appears to beryllium connected the cards. For either side, it represents the lone accidental of qualifying for Europe adjacent season.
But would it beryllium capable for Postecoglou to beryllium fixed different accidental to get things close astatine Tottenham?
In each honesty, it seems excessively small excessively late, and it’s not casual to ideate the Australian tactician remaining successful his occupation aft the summer.
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