‘Made everyone gasp’: Ange’s ‘bold’ selection calls hailed as fans unite behind Aussie in trophy bid

Ange Postecoglou’s bold selection calls have been praised in the aftermath of Tottenham’s 3-1 win at home to Norwegian champions Bodø/Glimt in the first leg of the Europa League semi-final.

Much of the post-game spotlight was shined on the late goal Spurs conceded to leave the door ajar for their rivals ahead of next week’s second leg on an artificial pitch in the Arctic Circle.

But Postecoglou reassured nervy fans by declaring that Bodø/Glimt captain Ulrik Saltnes’ 83rd minute strike, that looped goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario after a deflection, “doesn’t, I think, reflect our dominance in the game but if we repeat that performance next week and it’ll be enough for us to get through”.

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There was also plenty of discussion about Postecoglou’s infamous boast that he always win a trophy in his second season at a club.

But centre of post-match reaction was two key tactical decisions made by Postecoglou, to back in an experienced pair for the crunch clash in north London.

The Australian manager made seven changes to the starting XI from their 5-1 loss to Premier League champions Liverpool on Sunday, among those was the eyebrow-raising calls to return Yves Bissouma to the midfield and to deploy striker Richarlison in an unusual role.

Bissouma last started a little under a month ago with an underwhelming showing against Wolves that drew much criticism, but teenager Lucas Bergvall’s ankle injury opened the door for the 28-year-old who was born in the Ivory Coast but represents Mali in international football.

He repaid the faith immediately, playing a key hand in Brennan Johnson’s opening goal, which came just 38 seconds into the match, making it the fastest goal ever scored in a Europa League semi-final.

Richarlison was also integral to the build-up after the Brazilian started on the left wing instead of 20-year-old Frenchman Mathys Tel for his first start in a wide position since October 2023.

“In the biggest game of his Tottenham tenure, Ange Postecoglou made two selections that made everyone gasp,” Jack Pitt-Brooke wrote for The Athletic.

“In both cases it felt like Postecoglou was going for power and experience and over a younger, nimbler option.

“No-one could have expected Postecoglou to be vindicated as quickly as he was.

“Just over 30 seconds in, Bissouma won a ball he had no right to win.

“Pedro Porro whipped a cross from the right and Richarlison’s header back across goal was perfect.

“Brennan Johnson finished with a header of his own and Spurs were away.”

Postecoglou shared his delight in both player’s performances in his post-match press conference.

Richarlison was subbed off at half time for Tel, in what prompted concerns about a fresh injury issue in a season plagued by them - the 27-year-old made just his fifth Europa League appearance from a possible 13 and he has made 19 in all competitions.

But Postecoglou insisted that the change purely was tactical, despite the attacker having done “a great job for us in the first half, exactly what we needed him to do”.

Bissouma played the full 90 minutes alongside Rodrigo Bentancur in midfield meanwhile, and the manager thought they were sensational.

“I thought Biss and Rodri were outstanding. They were really key for us today,” Postecoglou said.

“The beauty of Lucas is that he fills that sort of role really well from a defensive point of view and the reason I put Biss in there today, I knew that we were going to need that from him, the way Bodo set up and their ability to try and gain momentum as they build up their play.

“I thought him and Rodri were going to be key for us stemming that, and that’s how it proved.

“I thought Biss was brilliant. Look, he’s had an up and down year like all of us, but I’ve still got full belief in him and full confidence that on a day like today he could do a really good job for us and I thought he was outstanding.”

The focus on being more sound defensively by using the likes of Bissouma to hold in midfield, drew widespread praise for Postecoglou from pundits.

A key part of Postecoglou’s trophy-laden resume is his ability to adapt his attacking instincts to when the situation needs more steeliness.

That was on show in the first leg, with the Australian exposing a weakness his Norwegian opponents possessed against the long, aerial ball.

Perhaps a takeaway from when they defeated Celtic 5-1 across two legs in the Europa Conference League in his first season in charge of the Scottish giants.

“This was not a victory based on the principles of ‘Ange-ball’ but another pragmatic and surprising direct display from Spurs,” The Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick wrote.

“Postecoglou’s side were happy to go long from goal-kicks or the centre-halves, and there was even the rare sight of goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario being ticked off by the referee for taking too long over a restart towards the end of the first half.

“After their pragmatic display in Frankfurt in the quarter-final second leg, which they ended with five defenders on the pitch and concerted attempts to run down the clock, this was another demonstration that Postecoglou is willing to tweak his ‘non-negotiables’ at this stage of the competition to make his side harder to beat.

“They face a big test of those more pragmatic qualities in northern Norway next week.”

One of the other big takeaways from arguably Tottenham’s best European night at their new stadium was the positivity of the fans.

Things have been testy throughout their disappointing Premier League campaign between Postecoglou and the supporter base.

But the semi-final first leg was more reminiscent of the early days of the Australian’s tenure.

The fans did not serenade the manager with their adapted version of Robbie Williams’ hit ‘Angels’ after the final whistle as they often did 18 months ago, but they created a loud, vibrant atmosphere that spurred on the team.

After James Maddison, who scored the second goal of the victory, declared that the players are “100%” behind Postecoglou on match eve, it showed many of the supporters might be too despite their frustrations about the state of the club being shown with chants of ‘Levy out’ directed at much-despised chairman Dan Levy.

The positivity outweighed the negativity however, as they kept the travelling fans quiet until Saltnes’ late goal.

Bodø/Glimt were not completely foreign to big stadiums having played away at Arsenal, Roma, Celtic, Lazio and Manchester United throughout their European journeys in recent years, but given Tottenham Hotspur Stadium’s capacity is bigger than the little more than 40,000 people population of Bodø, it was a different experience for the visitors.

“I thought our supporters were outstanding tonight, from the moment we walked out and I think they added the energy to the team,” Postecoglou said.

“Even us scoring an early goal came from the fact that as soon as the boys walked out, there was a buzz in the stadium and that’s a credit to our fans.

“We’ve obviously had a tough season, but the European nights this year have still been pretty special and they played their part tonight, massive role in us performing in the way we needed to.”

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