Ange Postecoglou hopes for Tottenham turning point but delivers semi-final warning | OneFootball

Spurs boss has history with Bodo/Glimt and knows the Norwegian champions will not offer an easy route to Europa League showpiece

Ange Postecoglou hopes that Tottenham's Europa League win over Eintracht Frankfurt will prove a significant turning point for the club but warned the result will count for nothing if they do not follow it up against Bodo/Glimt in the semi-finals.

Postecoglou, who twice lost to the Norwegian champions with Celtic, warned that Bodo would be “very, very difficult" opponents, particularly in the decisive away leg in the Arctic Circle on May 8.

Tottenham's 1-0 win in Germany on Thursday has dramatically changed the mood around their difficult season, raising hopes that they can finish the campaign with a first European trophy since 1984.

Going into the game, Postecoglou was under pressure and supporters restless following a 17th defeat in 32 league matches at Wolves last weekend but the Australian is a believer that one result can potentially change everything.

"At times it can, yeah," he said. "Depending on the result and more importantly the context in which it is made.

"It’s easy to sit here and say Thursday night is a pivotal moment, but it won’t be a pivotal moment if we don’t back it up in the semi.

"That’s when you’ll find out whether it was and if you do a season review DVD – do they still do DVDs? – you might go ‘that was the turning point’, but you only do that at the end.

Holding their nerve: Bodo/Glimt beat Lazio on penalties to reach the Europa League semi-finals

REUTERS

"But do I think Thursday was significant? Yes, I do. For a number of reasons. We overcame a real difficult opponent. We deserved to go through.

"There was no luck about it. Over two legs we were the stronger team, we did it in a real convincing manner and just the prospect of being in a semi-final means you’re two games away from being in a European final.

"That is hugely incentivising so it may be that was the pivotal game, but we won’t know that."

Postecoglou also believes that the way Spurs battled to a gutsy win in a deafening atmosphere in Frankfurt was a step forward for his young squad and a riposte to critics who believe he only has one way of playing.

"We’ve shown that before," he said, when asked about his side's committed display.

"A lot of our significant victories even this year have come away from home, whether that be Manchester City away or Man United away or Brentford away. Some of our best performances have been away from home, and a similar type performance.

"There’s always a difference when you play away in Europe. But again, that doesn’t fit into the narrative of me being fairly simple in terms of my tactical approach, that I only do things one way and that’s all I’ve done and all my success has been as a one-trick pony.

"They [Frankfurt] are a team that at home are really tough, they always score goals at home, so you know if you can keep a clean sheet that’s a significant development. If you can win there, that’s another significant development because they’re very strong."

A few years ago, Bodo were a relative unknown in European football but they have enjoyed a remarkable rise in recent seasons and beat Italian side Lazio in the quarter-finals.

Among their notable previous successes were a 5-1 aggregate win over Postecoglou's Celtic in a Europa Conference League play-off tie in February 2022 and a 6-1 thrashing of Jose Mourinho's Roma in the same competition.

Postecoglou is especially wary of the threat they will pose Spurs on their artificial pitch at Aspmyra Stadion in the second leg.

“I don’t think [their progress] is surprising," said Postecoglou. "I obviously have history with Bodo, we played them when I was at Celtic and I scouted them pretty extensively for that game.

Bad memories: Ange Postecoglou saw his Celtic side brushed aside by the Norwegians back in 2022

Getty Images

"I remember they beat Roma at home with Jose, and I remember Jose speaking about how difficult it was playing there. And I’ve followed them closely, and you've seen their growth. They are very difficult.

"They've got good talent ID. They’ve had players who moved on and done really well, very consistent, same manager, which always helps.

“And they've built real belief in their club. So I think they've earned the right to be in a semi-final, it’s not like they've had an easy sort of ride through it.

"They are a very, very difficult opponent away from home, absolutely. You just have to look at their record. But the balance of that is that Frankfurt had a pretty good home record as well, just as compelling.

"So I think you're in the semi-final, I don't think anyone would underestimate any opponent, but I certainly won't. I know them really well, and I know the challenge we're going to have to try and overcome them."