Tottenham Hotspur had been left to rue missed probabilities and the brilliance of goalkeeper Kaua Santos as they had been held to a 1-1 draw by Eintracht Frankfurt in the primary leg of their Europa League quarter-final on the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Ange Postecoglou’s aspect dominated a lot of the competition however had been repeatedly denied by Frankfurt’s Brazilian goalkeeper, who delivered a surprising efficiency to frustrate the house crowd.
Frankfurt took an early lead by way of Hugo Ekitike, who punished a defensive lapse to fireplace a low shot previous Guglielmo Vicario simply six minutes into the match. However Spurs responded strongly and equalised by way of Pedro Porro, who completed off a well-worked transfer with an audacious backheel flick — his first European aim for the membership.
Tottenham pushed ahead with depth after the break and had been unfortunate to not seize a winner. Lucas Bergvall and Rodrigo Bentancur each struck the crossbar in fast succession, whereas Son Heung-min and James Maddison had been denied by glorious saves from Santos.
Deep into stoppage time, Micky van de Ven’s bouncing header seemed destined for the web, however Santos as soon as once more got here to Frankfurt’s rescue with a fingertip cease that summed up his night time.
With Spurs sitting 14th in the Premier League and already out of the FA and Carabao Cups, the Europa League stays their solely hope of silverware this season. Postecoglou, who has constructed a fame for successful trophies in his second season at golf equipment, is aware of the return leg in Germany on 17 April is essential.
Tottenham’s efficiency, particularly in the second half, confirmed attacking aptitude and urgency — however their failure to discover a successful aim might show expensive towards a disciplined Frankfurt aspect and a red-hot Santos between the posts.
The second leg on the 58,000-capacity Waldstadion guarantees to be a troublesome check for Spurs, who should discover a medical edge if they’re to maintain their European goals alive.
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