Tottenham 1-1 Eintracht Frankfurt: Missed chances leave Europa League in the balance

Spurs and Eintracht Frankfurt played out a 1-1 draw at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the first leg of the Europa League quarter-finals. Despite an inspiring, if unlucky, second-half performance from the North Londoners, goals from Hugo Ekitike and Pedro Porro keep the tie level heading into next week’s decider.

Well, thankfully for Spurs, the away goals rule no longer exists. Because if it wasn’t, heading into a hostile German atmosphere needing to score would’ve been a nightmare. Eintracht Frankfurt will feel like the happier side with a draw, especially given how close they came to being completely overrun in the second half.

Ange Postecoglou made two changes to the XI that faced Southampton. Djed Spence – arguably Spurs’ best full-back in recent weeks – was rested, something that didn’t go down too well with fans. However, Destiny Udogie stepped in and gave a solid account of himself.

Micky van de Ven returned to the line-up, replacing Ben Davies for just his second Europa League start alongside Cristian Romero. Considering how much of this European campaign Spurs have had to navigate without key players, the fact they’re still standing says a lot. And with the core available again tonight, it’s hard not to wonder what could’ve been if injuries hadn’t held them back all season.

First half: Tottenham Hotspur 1-1 Eintracht Frankfurt

The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium was electric at kick-off and Spurs tried to ride the wave. But Frankfurt’s shape and quick counters made things tricky from the start. James Maddison, in particular, had a tough time holding onto the ball and it came back to bite.

Just six minutes in, Maddison was caught in possession – not in a dangerous area but Spurs were slow to react. Ellyes Skhiri wasted no time in switching it to Hugo Ekitike, who cut in from the left and curled in a stunning strike. Unsavable and no Spurs player got close to him. A stunner, yes, but avoidable.

The goal took some wind out of the home crowd, but Spurs kept pushing. Son Heung-min floated one in for Solanke, who couldn’t generate enough power. Then Solanke returned the favour with a cross to Brennan Johnson, only for Arthur Theate to make a vital interception.

Spurs started building some momentum with glimpses of very good build-up play and it finally paid off. Just before the half-hour mark, Solanke chased down a lost cause and picked out Maddison, who calmly rolled it across the box for Pedro Porro to flick home with a cheeky backheel. An outrageous finish to level things up.

Spurs eased off slightly after the equaliser, and Frankfurt were happy to have more of the ball again. Right before the break, the visitors almost took the lead. Ekitike found space in a 4v2 break but couldn’t get enough behind his shot.

At the half-time whistle, things were level. Spurs could be quite satisfied with the response after falling behind early. They had 60% possession and led the shot count 3-2. The xG was nearly level (0.18-0.23), but that didn’t quite reflect the flow of the game. More goals definitely felt likely.

Second half: Tottenham Hotspur 1-1 Eintracht Frankfurt

In short: it just wouldn’t go in for Spurs.

After a quiet 10 minutes, what followed was nothing short of an adrenaline rush and a succession of nearly moments.

First, Lucas Bergvall somehow got past three markers with his touch and fired a rocket from distance that crashed off the bar. A few seconds later, Son’s trademark cut-and-curl forced a brilliant save from the left. Then from the resulting corner, Bentancur’s header struck the woodwork too. Within a minute, Maddison tricked the left-back into a sliding challenge, drove inside, and forced another fantastic save with his left foot from close range.

Ekitike tried to flip the script, charging down the left and whipping in a cross that was ultimately fired wide. He remained a threat, but not one for Van de Ven.

Spence came on for Udogie in the final 10 minutes and immediately set up Johnson for what would have been an exact recreation of the first goal against Southampton except this time, Brennan Johnson smashed the ball over the bar. Solanke was in a better position behind him and would’ve had a tap-in if the Welshman had let it run.

Solanke, known for his selflessness in the box, once again didn’t quite have his best night. He had another moment late on where he could’ve set up Tel, Bergvall, or Johnson following a Frankfurt error in the back, but instead took on his man and dragged the ball away from the attacking runners.

That was the cue for Richarlison to come on, making his first appearance since the 4-0 loss to Liverpool in the Carabao Cup semi-final. He wasn’t heavily involved, but it was good to see him back on the pitch.

And in the dying moments, Bentancur nodded a Porro free-kick across goal to Van de Ven, who got a feathered touch that looped towards goal – only for Santos to pull off one final save.

What’s next for Tottenham in the Europa League?

Tottenham will feel hard done by. On the balance of play, they should’ve been out of sight. They had 56.7% of the ball, created 10 shots to Frankfurt’s 4, and won the xG battle 0.89-0.36. Hitting the woodwork twice and forcing multiple saves in a few breathless minutes, it felt like a win was coming but the finishing touch just wouldn’t arrive.

Ignore the scoreline and the slow start, and this was arguably one of Spurs’ best performances of the season. And barring the front three, there were strong showings all around.

Rodrigo Bentancur, in particular, was sensational. He made four tackles (the most in the match) and remained a constant threat from set pieces. On this form, it’s no surprise the club are sweating over his contract situation.

This result means Tottenham will still have work to do in the Europa League quarter-final second leg in Germany next Thursday. Before that, they face Wolves on Sunday afternoon – and we’re likely to see a heavily rotated starting XI.

COYS.

• READ MORE – Five things we learned from Tottenham 1-1 Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League