Ange Postecoglou speaks on the impact the injury returnees have made to the Tottenham squad over the last month or so
Tottenham Hotspur are back in Europa League action on Thursday for the first time since they overcame AZ Alkmaar 3-2 on aggregate in their round-of-16 tie. This comes just days after the Lilywhites secured a 3-1 Premier League win against basement club Southampton, where Brennan Johnson netted a brace.
Spurs are set to arguably play their most important game of the season, as German club Eintracht Frankfurt visit the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the first leg of the Europa League quarter-finals. Ange Postecoglou and his boys will be hoping to win the first leg handsomely in order to head to Germany with the advantage.
Heading into the game, Ange Postecoglou has a few injury concerns to deal with. Dejan Kulusevski has missed the last six games with a foot problem, and Ange revealed before the Southampton game that the Swede is pushing to make himself available for the return leg against Frankfurt. Kevin Danso has been sidelined with a hamstring issue too, and like Kulusevski, he could return for the trip to Germany next week.
Since the last month, several key players have made their return from injury problems. The likes of Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven, Wilson Odobert, Ben Davies, Dominic Solanke and Richarlison have all made their comebacks, beefing up Ange’s squad. Spurs have looked healthier in terms of the squad size, thereby, providing the boss with quality options to bring off the bench as well in contrast to the initial months of the campaign.
Ange has been speaking to the media ahead of Thursday’s clash. The Australian tactician was asked how the team has performed since several players have returned from injuries over the last six to seven weeks, to which he told Football London:
“I can assure you it hasn’t been six or seven weeks. Anyway, I think we’ve been ok. Again, it’s been disruptive, trying to juggle getting players game time while also resting some players at different times so we can get to this position where we’ve got a fairly fit and strong squad to tackle what’s ahead.
“I thought first half at the weekend was really good. I thought there were some really good signs both with and without the ball, that the lads are getting stronger in the areas we need them to.”
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The main reason behind Tottenham’s torrid campaign has been the injury crisis. Persistent injuries have just not allowed the team to get any sort of momentum or continuity whatsoever. It forced our gaffer to field different partnerships at the back, shuffle his midfield options and make changes to his attack in almost every game.
After playing the vast majority of the campaign with a depleted squad, the 59-year-old tactician can now finally field something close to his strongest possible XI for the Europa League quarter-finals. Having a healthier squad than before will only improve Tottenham’s chances of beating a strong Frankfurt side over two legs and progressing to the last four of the competition.
