Tottenham have a lot of work to do to reach the Europa League semi-finals after a 1-1 draw at home to Eintracht Frankfurt in the first leg of their quarter-final tie.
Ange Postecoglou watched as Spurs went one-down after six minutes through a superb long-range strike from Hugo Ekitique, but Pedro Porro levelled midway through the first half with a spectacular backheel.
The Premier League side increased the pressure after the break, with Lucas Bergwall and Rodrigo Bentancur hitting the post and Frankfurt's reserve goalkeeper Kaua Santos making key saves to deny Son Heung-min, James Maddison and Micky van de Ven, leaving the outcome uncertain ahead of the return leg in Germany next week.
It was Tottenham's first European quarter-final since 2019 but a tense domestic campaign meant it would be another two-legged tie that would prove crucial for Postecoglou, who said on Wednesday the “general consensus” was that even success in this competition might not save his job.
Spurs' bid to reach the semi-finals got off to a rocky start when Frankfurt delighted their ecstatic fans with a goal in the sixth minute.
After Maddison lost the ball to Ellies Skhiri, the visitors mounted a fine counter-attack and Ekitikey broke through, rounding Porro and firing into the bottom corner from 22 yards for his 20th goal of the season.
The hosts were forced to survive two consecutive corners shortly after, but they began to get their game going thanks to two dangerous passes from Son and Dominic Solanke that briefly put the home fans out of action.
To light a spark in the Tottenham goal, a goal was needed and an unexpected source opened the scoring in the 26th minute.
First Son and Solanke combined and then the latter found Maddison, who rounded Skhiri and passed the ball back to Porro, who expertly equalised for only his third goal of the season.
It sparked wild celebrations in Spurs' South Stand but another chance was wasted when Son fired wide from close range.
Ekitikey finished the half with a weak shot straight at Guglielmo Vicario, but a decisive intervention from Bergvall denied him a chance just after the break.
Bergwall was the catalyst for the game changing, dodging two opponents and firing a powerful shot against the crossbar in the 55th minute to begin a period of dominance for Spurs.
That was followed by a save from Kaua to deny Son's curling shot, and then Bentancur's header from Porro's corner went over the bar.
Maddison's low shot, which Kaua successfully blocked, ended a run of four chances in as many minutes that ultimately failed to produce a second goal for Tottenham.
Shortly afterwards, Jean-Matteo Bajoya crossed for Frankfurt, reminding them of their threat, before Caua saved another Bentancur header.
Postecoglou took a risk late in the match by replacing Son and Maddison and the winner almost came in injury time, but Van de Ven's close-range header after a Bentancur knockdown was impressively saved by Kaoua.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
