spurs-2.jpg
Getty Images

LONDON -- At the final whistle, it was hard to shake the sense that Tottenham had let something slip. They had fought back quite impressively from their self-inflicted troubles early on and were unlucky to run into a backup goalkeeper as impressive as Kaua Santos.

Still the 21-year-old between the Eintracht Frankfurt posts was hardly the only reason that the visitors were bouncing with their supporters at the final whistle. They will return to Hesse knowing that they are in the ascendancy in the tie but that that could so easily have been whisked away from them. 

At no time was that more apparent than when Micky van de Ven got everything right off a late free kick, heading Rodrigo Bentancur's flick into the mixer forcefully down into the deck, the ball seemingly bouncing towards the top corner. Somehow, Santos got a glove on it. The emergency replacement for Kevin Trapp had been almost as impressive in denying a classic Heung-min Son curler earlier in the half and holding firm when James Maddison tried his luck from 12 yards out. 

Five saves drawn from the Eintracht Frankfurt goalkeeper is a sign that Tottenham got a lot right without reward, but this was not just a matter of misfortune. For a time, the game was there for the hosts. It began with the stadium at its most subdued, the only noise the away end's curious interpolation of the Sound of Silence. Then Lucas Bergvall made something happen. Picking the ball up midway into the Tottenham half, he drove past one challenge and into space. His right-footed strike swung viciously, ultimately a little too viciously, as it crashed against the corner of post and bar.

Immediately, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium roared its approval. The Frankfurt contingent tried to answer back but the South Stand was built to drown out away ends. It was rocking, the 12th man so impactful it seemed like it must be showing for passes in midfield. That was the only way to explain how the action then coalesced around the Frankfurt penalty area: Son's shot well saved, Bentancur flicking a header over the bar.

The game was there for Tottenham until it hit a lull. It had been a draining hour for the hosts, chasing back against so many dangerous counters. James Maddison and Son had looked off the pace for too long, an impetus of fresh legs was needed. Instead, Postecoglou waited. To an extent, you could understand his reasoning. Spurs had been playing as well as they had in weeks, composed in possession after their early sloppiness had given Frankfurt the breakaway that Hugo Ekitike finished emphatically. Since Pedro Porro's flick had drawn them level, the hosts had looked like the most likely scorer. Why change a good thing?

Equally, it is easy to imagine how draining it would be for the Frankfurt defense if they saw the dynamic, energetic faces of Pape Matar Sarr, Mathys Tel and Djed Spence gathering on the touchline with another half hour to hold out. As Postecoglou himself noted, all three impacted the game positively when they did come on. Had it been sooner, might they be heading to Germany in the ascendancy?

Without that lead they will have to, at the very least, replicate the second half for the full 90 minutes and perhaps more. Repeat the loose passes of Cristian Romero, the driving into traffic of Maddison and there will be a mountain to climb. This was, however, a high-level display for Tottenham. One of the defining traits of their season has been that while such displays have come, they have not been in bunches. No wonder Postecglou felt that something had been left on the table.

"I guess a little bit frustrated by the result," he said. "I thought the performance in general was really, really good from the boys. Obviously we conceded early, which was disappointing and it was a fair strike from the lad [Ekitike]. We responded well. 

"We hit the crossbar three times and on any other day we're winning that game." Whether any other day happens to be next Thursday is now the deciding issue for Tottenham's season.