Pedro Porro explains the difficulties Tottenham had to face last season en-route to their Europa League-winning campaign
After years of misery and heartache, Tottenham Hotspur finally managed to end their trophy drought and win the UEFA Europa League.
The historic win ended the club’s 17-year wait for a major trophy and also ensured that Champions League football was heading back to White Hart Lane after three seasons. Ange Postecoglou did the unthinkable and guided Spurs to a 1-0 win over a lacklustre Manchester United side in the Europa League final in Bilbao in May, living up to his word of winning trophies in his second season at clubs.
However, Daniel Levy decided to sack Ange Postecoglou two weeks after the Europa League success. It was a bold move from the Spurs chairman, one that would have left many fans perplexed. In an interview with Gary Neville on the Overlap, Levy revealed that the decision to sack Ange was a ‘collective decision’ made by the club’s board of directors.
Pedro Porro says Tottenham deserves to be in the Champions League
Truth be told, Tottenham were extremely painful to watch in the Premier League last season. An injury crisis was one of the primary reasons behind the Lilywhites’ detestable league form and them finishing in 17th spot.
Ange’s side lost a staggering 22 of 38 Premier League games. They struggled for any sort of rhythm and consistency throughout the league campaign, and Tottenham finishing just a spot above the relegation zone led to the inevitable sacking of the Greek-Australian tactician in the first week of June. Despite this, the north Londoners qualified for the Champions League via Europa League success.
Spanish newspaper ABC asked Pedro Porro over what he thinks about the manner in which Tottenham entered this season’s Champions League competition. The Spurs full-back says he has no doubts that the club deserves to compete in the Champions League this term.
“We had a very difficult year in the league due to many factors. Things weren’t going our way, we weren’t competing as we should have, because I saw two different teams, one in the Premier League and one in the Europa League,” Pedro Porro told ABC newspaper (h/t Sport Witness).
“In the Europa League, we knew how to compete well, and that paid off. But when you don’t compete in a competition like the Premier League, where you have to be at 200% every game, it’s difficult.”
“At the end of the season, we won the Europa League and we’re going to play in the Champions League this year. We deserve it.”
Thomas Frank has got a good squad to compete in Europe
Levy appointed Thomas Frank as Ange’s successor, and Spurs have started the new Premier League campaign well with two wins from three games. After back-to-back wins over Burnley and Manchester City, Tottenham were aiming for the top spot on the table last weekend. However, they were brought crashing down to the earth by Bournemouth, who won 1-0 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The club chairman was quick to react to the Bournemouth loss as he dipped in the market on deadline day to bring Randal Kolo Muani on loan from Paris Saint-Germain. With Kolo Muani entering the building, it took the summer signings count to six. Thomas Frank should be quite satisfactory with his first transfer window as our gaffer amid the player rejections. The Dane now has a decent squad to compete well in the Champions League and other competitions.