Postecoglou delighted after Tottenham book quarter finals spot with 3-1 AZ Alkmaar win
13/03/2025
uefa25
13/03/2025
uefa25
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00Congratulations Ange, you must be delighted with the way your team went about it the whole
00:11game.
00:12Yeah, I really liked the way the boys addressed the challenge tonight.
00:16It's not easy when you're one year old down before the game starts, you kind of know that
00:22you don't want to give the opposition any opportunity to get a further advantage.
00:27I just thought we started the game really well, really composed and in control.
00:32We didn't create a lot but at the same time we just had them camped in their half and
00:36didn't really let them sort of enter into anywhere near our goal and scored a really
00:41good goal from our press.
00:42And then second half started brilliantly, exactly what we wanted to do, got our goal
00:47and then you sort of give them a goal and that puts a tie again on edge a little bit.
00:52I thought our response to that was really good, scored another good goal, probably should
00:56have got another one or two to finish the game off.
00:59We probably didn't handle the last ten minutes very well but at the same time when I'm having
01:06to change the back line so much at such a critical time, it's going to disrupt us.
01:11But again I thought in the big moments the boys stood up well and I'm really pleased
01:16they've done a fantastic job to get us through.
01:18How important was it to have your older players leading the way but also players like Wilson
01:22and Lucas, the youngsters, having such big nights?
01:26Yeah, massive.
01:27It's brilliant for us, brilliant for the club like I keep saying.
01:29We've got some real exciting talent.
01:32Lucas is growing all the time.
01:35People are sort of getting a glimpse of what Wilson's all about.
01:39It's a shame what's happened to him this year and he's still working his way to full fitness.
01:44I just thought the whole group handled it really well.
01:47It was great to have Romero and Mickie.
01:50We just looked so solid at the back while they were out there.
01:53It never really looked like getting threatened.
01:55It just made us look a lot more solid as a team.
02:00A lot of positives there.
02:03Congratulations once again.
02:05So much energy from the players and in your program notes you asked for the crowd to respond
02:10to the occasion and they've done that as well.
02:13I would like to point out that your captain, fantastic Sonny, never stopped running.
02:18He was on fire tonight, wasn't he?
02:20Sonny gives everything every game.
02:23There's no doubt about that.
02:25He works so hard for the team.
02:28He had a couple of moments today, a couple of times unlucky,
02:31a couple of times he could have been on the end of things.
02:35It was a collective effort tonight.
02:38I think it's the first time since October we've had our four leaders on the park.
02:43Vicario, Romero, Madison and Sonny.
02:48So much this year we've relied on one or two of those
02:51but to have all four of them out there makes a difference for us.
02:54I thought they all led the team well.
02:57Do you feel like the team looked more like themselves tonight
03:01than they have done for a while, particularly in that second half
03:04with the physical level they showed?
03:06It's no coincidence that we're getting some of our key players back.
03:12Of course we are.
03:14Also the guys are getting some decent recovery between games
03:18and I'm able to change the team a fair bit.
03:20Don't forget Sonny and Madison didn't start on the weekend.
03:24We can do these things that allow us to prepare the team properly.
03:30We did look more like ourselves but we've still got levels to go
03:34because I still think guys like Romero and Mickey and Wilson and Dom
03:38are still building their way back up to match fitness and match sharpness.
03:44With the quarter-finals almost three and a half weeks away
03:49it's a great opportunity for us to get these guys up to speed for that game.
03:54Are you positive and encouraged by what could happen for the rest of the season?
03:58This could be a turning point if you like?
04:01I've always been positive and encouraged.
04:06My mood is not dictated by outside, it's dictated by internal things
04:10and I've never wavered from the fact.
04:12I've said consistently that when we're at our best we can compete with anyone
04:18and we get an opportunity now to build up some of our players
04:24and hopefully still get some significant talent out who could be coming back.
04:29All those kind of things are going to be helpful for us to reach the levels we need.
04:34Just a word on Madison, that roll through midfield for the third goal
04:38which was a brilliant goal.
04:40Good performance from him all night?
04:42Yeah, I thought all night it was really good.
04:46I think all those four leaders felt like it's their time now.
04:52They've all done it really tough this year.
04:54It's been tough for all of us, the whole club, but particularly the players.
04:59I thought Matters, when we needed the quality, was there tonight
05:02and made all the good decisions for us.
05:04Worked hard for the team, which is also important.
05:06As I said, from my perspective it now allows us to have this platform
05:12of a solid core group of players.
05:14Our best players are available, getting to fitness,
05:18but also we have this ability to put people on
05:22who can also impact games, which I thought was important today.
05:27Obviously Wilson got his first goals since his injury layoff.
05:32How important do you think that's going to be for him
05:34and what is it he offered that made you pick him
05:38in the starting eleven over other options?
05:42Super pleased for him because he's worked awfully hard.
05:44I'd be surprised if I have to explain what I saw in him
05:48if you didn't see that today.
05:52I was excited when we signed him.
05:54He's one of these players, like I said,
05:56who has the ability to turn the game around.
06:01Has the ability to take people on, find space,
06:05great technician.
06:07Super pleased for him to get his goals tonight
06:09because he's worked hard silently to get back in the team.
06:14Obviously he came to a new club this year,
06:16a big club, a big move for him
06:18and it just hasn't worked out through no fault of his own
06:21because of his injury.
06:23It's been frustrating for me not to be able to showcase him
06:29and know how much he can develop.
06:31That's just a starting point for him.
06:33Like I said, he's still working his way to full fitness.
06:36When you look at the likes of him and Lucas and Archie
06:42and two or three others we've got,
06:44there's some enormous exciting talent there.
06:49That final goal felt like a vintage post-Koglou goal at Tottenham.
06:53We perhaps haven't seen it as much in recent months
06:55probably because of the injuries.
06:57But how satisfying and important was it
06:59to see a goal of that quality?
07:01I think it's important.
07:03All goals are important,
07:05particularly in a game like that.
07:07But when you score a goal that you know
07:09is so much of a core of our attacking phases
07:12and we work so hard on,
07:14I think the players get belief out of that
07:16that it does work.
07:18Like I said, having Dom in there
07:20gives you a real focal point.
07:22Just having his presence in the box,
07:24the ability to have guys like Madders
07:26and Sonny fresh today
07:28to be able to run at the opposition,
07:30they're just things we haven't had
07:32the luxury of in the last three and a half months.
07:37As I said, I think it was
07:39a really good foundational game for us to build on.
07:43I still feel like we'll improve
07:45because like I said, it's just the nature
07:47of where people are at at the moment.
07:51I couldn't be happier with the players.
07:53I think they deserve to get through.
07:58Now we're in the quarterfinals
08:00of a European competition,
08:02which I think is exciting.
08:04You've obviously had pressure matches
08:06this season, but it felt like
08:08there was a huge amount of scrutiny
08:10and pressure in this game.
08:12Is it an important step for the team
08:14to come through this for the next rounds
08:16to know you've gone through this one
08:18so they can do it again going forward?
08:20I think the way we handled it
08:23was as much as you try
08:25and block out the outside noise,
08:27it doesn't bother me,
08:29but I'm sure the players
08:31and the whole club's aware
08:33that tonight was a big night for us.
08:35When you're already one nil down,
08:37you can get really anxious about it,
08:39but I never felt that.
08:41Like I said, up until we gave them
08:43their first goal, I just thought
08:45the lads were just handling it superbly.
08:47They were in control.
08:49We looked strong. We looked dominant.
08:51We looked aggressive.
08:53We looked threatening in the front third.
08:55All the things we want to be.
08:57I think Mickie coming off disrupted us a little bit
08:59and we had to change a couple of things.
09:01Like I said, we gave him a goal
09:03and that changed the momentum of the game
09:05and made him more nervy than he needed to be.
09:07It was a big night.
09:09I couldn't be happier with the way
09:11the players tackled it.
09:13It's a credit to them.