Ange Postecoglou ‘has had enough’ at Tottenham after crushing new Solanke injury blow
Tottenham left with defeat in the first leg of their Europa League round of 16 tie against AZ Alkmaar on Thursday night.
Lucas Bergvall’s own goal in the 18th minute proved to be the decisive moment as it finished 1-0 in the Netherlands, ahead of the return leg in North London next week.
Things went from bad to worse for Ange Postecoglou after Dominic Solanke was forced off through injury in the 91st minute, despite coming on as a substitute 19 minutes earlier.
Postecoglou bad luck continues at Tottenham
It has not been an easy season for Postecoglou at Tottenham and while other factors have played their part, injuries have certainly had a big impact on proceedings.
The North London outfit has been constantly hit by injury issues which have left them light on many occasions throughout the campaign.
As a result, the Lilywhites find themselves sitting 13th in the Premier League and with only the Europa League left to play for.
Furthermore, given Solanke has only just returned from a period on the sidelines, his injury is another massive blow and Postecoglou must have had enough by now.
Ed Aarons shared that the forward had to be helped back to the dugout after coming off the pitch, which does not immediately suggest a positive outcome.
Tottenham have plenty of work to do
Bergvall’s own goal was an unfortunate moment but it completely set the tone for the game and Tottenham were unable to come back from it.
It wasn’t just a moment of bad luck in an otherwise strong performance either, the Lilywhites were well below the expected levels throughout the evening and did not offer enough.
| Team | Possession | Shots | Shots on target |
| Tottenham | 62% | 7 | 1 |
| AZ Alkmaar | 38% | 12 | 5 |
Although they will surely feel more confident on home turf, Postecoglou’s side now have to start the game already a goal behind which is never an easy challenge.
In addition to this, the squad will know that there is a large amount of pressure on them as if they are knocked out of the Europa League, their season is effectively over.
Solanke’s injury was a definite blow for the North London outfit but they cannot afford to get too focused on that and rather, Spurs have to be ready to give it everything in the second leg.