Europe Spurs On Glory Once Again

The mighty Spurs have once again shown their class under the lights of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in another European tie. This now extends the team’s unbeaten streak at home in Europe to an impressive 22 games. Whilst the opposition at times has been much less of a quality than the dominant sides which we often face week in and week out in the league campaign, there seems to be a stark contrast when it comes to European nights.

Having managed only 4 victories in a year at home, the team has put on some absolutely dismal displays for the Spurs fans in the league. Whilst the away record is much better and has ensured that Spurs still sit 6th in the league, much better than Ole Ange’s dismal position during his tenure, things have been a poor showing for the Spurs faithful in North London. Even the most experienced and loyal Aussie followers of Ange, using the top-rated Australian betting sites to gamble, could not have predicted the European form that Spurs have shown over the last 18 months.

Following on from the scenes of victory after the Europa League win last year, the team has put in some great performances in the Champions League this year, and the 4-0 victory, despite losing a man to a red card against Copenhagen, pushes the side onto an unbeaten run of 22 games. They now sit at 10th in the Champions League group stage table, and whilst much stiffer opponents await them with PSG next and Dortmund to follow, the team has been performing exceptionally well. Goals from Johnson, Odobert, Van de Ven, and Paulinha marked a comprehensive European victory, with Johnson seeing red being the only real downside.

It is hard to really place why this is the case. Some think the heart of the club was taken away from them during the move from White Hart Lane to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Pundits and observers have emphasized Frank’s record at Brentford and the way this also reflects in Spurs’ results, whereby his Brentford team seemed to treasure away games as a gateway for getting points on the board. Some say the stadium is too comfortable for away teams, Tim Sherwood thinks there’s too much pressure at home games, others have pointed towards the continued poor team performances, whilst some also think the focus off the pitch on Daniel Levy’s management of the club has caused unwelcome distractions. The reality is that it may be a combination of the three.

Whilst the run in the Europa League last season and conference league wins that have contributed to the 22-game unbeaten streak can certainly be attributed to facing much easier opponents, these Champions League fixtures have not been what you could call easy. Villareal and Copenhagen have both churned out some great results over the years. Villareal currently sits 3rd in La Liga, whilst Copenhagen made the Round of 16 in the Champions League last year. Yet a 1-0 victory against Villareal and the recent Copenhagen results have seen this Spurs team walk away with maximum points from these home games.

Frank and the lads have managed to get results at home against both, whilst still facing defeat against league opponents in dismal displays against Bournemouth, Chelsea, and Villa, and drawing with Wolves. It just doesn’t seem to add up. Especially when you look at the performances that were offered against Wolves, Bournemouth, and Chelsea, which were sub-par at best. Averaging a 21% win rate at home, the 2nd worst in the league, is just not good enough for the club.

It seems the team can get themselves very geared up and ready for European nights, but struggles with this same enthusiasm when it comes to bog-standard league games. However, the reality is that, as fans, they all count. We want to see good league performances alongside European victories. Indeed, it may be for many of the Spurs faithful that a good Premier League season this year is the priority following the 17th finish last year, despite the Europa League success.

This is very much a conundrum that Thomas Frank will need to fix in the coming weeks and months; otherwise, he may face the same fate that Big Ange faced. At the end of the day, European success can only get you so far. I guess the question lies with us fans. Would you rather continue to go unbeaten at home in Europe and go on to win the Champions League or have a better domestic season to ensure Champions League football next season through league success? Or maybe, we shouldn’t even have to be weighing up that trade-off.