Tottenham: Ange Postecoglou not hiding from ‘massive’ chance to ‘accelerate’ Spurs plans
Ange Postecoglou has tended to play down the significance of the domestic cups at Tottenham, previously insisting that they were not a quick fix for the club’s problems, but the head coach made no attempt to dismiss the potential impact of beating Liverpool on Thursday.
Spurs take a 1-0 lead to Anfield for their Carabao Cup semi-final second leg and, for Postecoglou, reaching Wembley at the expense of Arne Slot’s Premier League leaders would be transformative for his young side, particularly as they have already beaten both Manchester clubs in previous rounds.
“There’s no hiding it, it would be massive,” Postecoglou said. “To get to a final, it’s going to be hard-earned.
“Going to Anfield, the way they’re going this year, they’ve been an unbelievable team, they’re so consistent, they’re the most settled, injury-free team in the whole league. Apart from us, they’re the only ones still having a crack at all the competitions.
“[Given] all those ingredients, if we manage to overcome that and get to a final, it would be massive. Massive for where we’re at, massive for our future. I’m sure it will accelerate the growth of our players and the belief in what we’re trying to do. In that context, it’s a massive night for us.
“But I think we’ve earned the right to be in this position, even though it’s been a real, difficult season for us. We’ve earned the right to make a big impact.”
As Postecoglou hoped, the signings of Kevin Danso and Mathys Tel have lifted the mood at the club, giving everyone a new spring in their step.
Both new arrivals are in contention to start on Merseyside, potentially adding a freshness to Postecoglou’s depleted side, although the visitors will still be missing a host of key players, with neither Micky van de Ven nor Cristian Romero fit enough to feature.
Part of the challenge for a youthful Spurs will be dealing with the Anfield atmosphere after Postecoglou’s players appeared overawed in visits to Galatasaray, Rangers in the Europa League, as well as on their recent trip to the blue half of Merseyside for a dismal 3-2 defeat to Everton.
“It’s part inexperience but I think we handled Old Trafford pretty well which can be intimidating, so we’ve had our moments,” Postecoglou said.
“Those experiences have allowed us to grow, for sure. Especially some of our younger players. For a lot of them they’re still firsts.
