TTLB Opinion: Tottenham will need to be wary of Jens Petter Hauge but how can Ange contain him?

Tottenham Hotspur are set to face Bodo/Glimt in the semi-finals of UEFA’s second-tier competition, the Europa League, and Ange Postecoglou will know that the Norwegian side have a lot of threat in them, we discussed how Kasper Høgh will be a tricky player to contain, but there is one more, Jens Petter Hauge, someone who controls a lot of how Kjetil Knutsen’s side create chances.

He did have spells away at a couple of elite clubs in the European top five leagues, but he has since returned to Norway and has reinvigorated his career in 2025, having become a key player for Bodo and especially their run in Europe. And given that he is coming into the game high on confidence, Ange Postecoglou must be looking to deploy a tactical plan to ensure that the Lilywhites nullify his impact on the tie.

Hauge has reemerged into his mood, and you could see that with how involved he has been in the Europa League for his current employers. He has been a part of the last seven goals in the last 14 that Bodo have had in European competitions. His performance of a couple of goals, complemented by one assist, played an important role in their 3-2 comeback against FC Porto to book a place in the semi-finals.

Let’s look into how Hague plays and the impact that he can make:

Hague is someone who thrives on his short bursts of pace and acceleration, and his tight control of the ball gives him the space to do so while not losing possession. He primarily wants to isolate his man in a one-on-one situation, and by taking on, he tries to force fouls. So the Lilywhites full-backs have to ensure that he doesn’t get them into isolated space, and where they can win free kicks and create chances out of nothing.

Then come his movements off the ball; the 25-year-old makes smart diagonal runs from the left channel, and he drives into half spaces, so this way he comes from outside to inside to take up the space between full-backs and centre-backs. And he has those blindside movements, so he can have those quick switches, which are quite sharp, making it difficult to track.

But what about after he beats his man? The Norwegian delivers quality low crosses or sharp cut-backs (rather than hopeful balls that we see many wingers do), and if you look at the stats, his deliveries end up consistently creating high-xG chances. The North Londoners need to ensure that they don’t allow him time or space to pick crosses — Hauge’s final ball quality is decisive.

How can Tottenham contain him?

As we argued before, Ange Postecoglou could start Djed Spence at right back, given that he is strong in sprints and direct duels,and given that the former Middlesbrough midfielder is quite capable of physically containing Hauge. And if the zones are still exposed, the North Londoners can end up double-teaming on ball arrival, taking away his dangerous inside cuts.

The Australian head coach can also deploy tactical triggers, so if Hauge receives the ball with his back to the goal, then Tottenham can apply immediate pressure to force him backwards or dispossess him. When Hauge is isolated wide, Tottenham can delay and possibly wait for cover to come from the midfield, so this way he doesn’t end up taking advantage of take-ons and earning fouls.

And when Tottenham end up regaining possession, Ange can end up overlapping down his wing, given that Hauge hasn’t had that defensive work rate and any overload there can force Bodo’s structure to react defensively.

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It is to be seen what sort of tactical know-how Ange goes on to deploy to contain Hauge, but this is surely going to be one of the decisive factors in the tie.