Tottenham will play Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League quarter-finals following Ange Postecoglou’s crucial second-leg 3-1 victory over AZ Alkmaar.
Spurs headed into north London 1-0 down following their lacklustre defeat in the Netherlands, but they turned it around in front of their home crowd. A brace from Wilson Odobert and a James Maddison counter attack goal gave Tottenham all they needed to progress to the quarter-finals.
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Elsewhere, Frankfurt advanced the quarter-finals with ease. After finishing fifth in the league phase, one position below Spurs, they matched with Ajax who had to win a playoff fixture before their round of 16 bout with the Bundesliga side. The German club won both legs with an aggregate score of 6-2.
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Frankfurt, managed by Dino Toppmoller, won the Europa League in 2021/22 where they beat Rangers on penalties. In the Bundesliga, ‘The Eagles’ currently sit in a Champions League spot but are a hefty 19 points off Bayern Munich at the top of the table.
The two sides met less than three years ago in the Champions League group stages following Frankfurt’s automatic qualification to the tournament following their Europa League trophy victory. Tottenham won in their first meeting in north London 3-2 and the reverse fixture in Germany finished 0-0.
Tottenham beat AZ Alkmaar at Spurs Stadium after being 1-0 down in the first-leg -Credit:GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images
Spurs have only lost once to Frankfurt, and you have to go back to 1982 for that game during the UEFA European Cup Winners Cup.
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The first match of the two-legged quarter-final will be on May 10 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with the reverse leg exactly a week later. If Tottenham were to progress, they would face either Serie A side Lazio or Norwegian icons Bode/Glimt in the semi-final.