Way Tottenham Won Europa League Tie ‘So Spursy’ Says Critical Former PL Star

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Former Premier League star Steve Nicol thinks Tottenham Hotspur never managed to nail the tie against AZ Alkmaar in both legs, which he termed ‘so Spursy’ and believes they do not win games without any drama.

Tottenham went to the Netherlands last week and lost 1-0 in the first leg of their Europa League tie, giving them a tough task to win the game with a two or more goal margin in north London to progress to the next round.

Spurs managed to achieve that on Thursday as they went 2-0 up in the 48th minute only to see themselves dragged back into the tie with a 64th-minute strike by Peer Koopmeiners; they ultimately sealed a 3-1 victory with Wilson Odobert’s winner.

Nicol pointed out that Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham do not know how to get the game over the line without causing drama and stressed that Spurs cannot change their way of playing according to the demands of the game.

The ex-defender believes that Tottenham are in a good position to lift the Europa League this season but added that at no moment in time did the London outfit seem to get hold of the tie against AZ Alkmaar, which he believes is something historically Spurs teams have done.

“Tottenham, yes, they are through; yes, they are in a good position considering who is left in this competition and if you are a fan, then you are definitely dreaming that you can win a European tournament, but again, I am a bit of a realist and the way they won this two-legged tie is just so Spursy”, Nicol said on ESPN FC (1:30).

“At no stage did they nail this victory down at no stage because they don’t know how to.

“They only know how to go one way, which is great for the neutral and it is great when it is working if you are a Tottenham fan, but unfortunately you have to be able to change in a game to make sure that you get over the line free of any drama and we saw yet again it was absolutely not free of drama.”

Tottenham have managed to keep their silverware dream alive after the win against AZ Alkmaar as well as the hope of qualifying for the Champions League next season by winning the tournament.

Postecoglou’s side will face Eintracht Frankfurt, who are having a good season in Bundesliga, in the quarter-final of the Europa League.

Eintracht Frankfurt knocked Ajax out of the last 16.