Ange Postecoglou spoke to the media at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium after our 3-1 win against Bodo/Glimt in the first leg of our UEFA Europa League semi-final.
Here's what he had to say...
Ange on how he sees the overall tie...
"I think it puts us in a good position. I thought the players were outstanding today, I thought our performance was everything it needed to be, really well organised and disciplined defensively and really calm going forward and created good opportunities for ourselves and maintaining pressure. Obviously they scored the goal late, which doesn't I think reflect our dominance in the game, but if we repeat that performance next week it'll be enough for us to get through."
Ange on Richarlison, Maddison and Solanke...
"Richarlison wasn't injured, it was just a tactical thing. He did a great job for us in the first half, exactly what we needed him to do, but we thought the game would open up in the second half and we got Mathys on for that. Dom and Madders... Madders felt a tweak in his knee, but it doesn't sound like it's anything serious, and Dom something similar in his quad, but both of them didn't feel it was anything too significant, but thought it was wise just to take them off at that point."
Ange on the atmosphere...
"I thought our supporters were outstanding tonight, from the moment we walked out, and I think they added the energy to the team. Even us scoring an early goal came from the fact that as soon as the boys walked out, there was a buzz in the stadium and that's a credit to our fans. We've obviously had a tough season, but the European nights this year have still been pretty special and they played their part tonight, a massive role in us performing in the way we needed to."
Ange's latest on Lucas Bergvall...
"It's too early to assess. You know, it's just the way our season's gone, unfortunately, it's just hugely disappointing for Lucas, he was obviously really excited. He had a big week, re-signing with the club and he's had such a great year for us. Like I said, it's just the way our season's gone, where in training something innocuous like that ends up with him hurting his ankle. We'll just assess over the next few days, let it settle down and we'll find the extent of it."
Ange on Yves Bissouma's display...
"I thought Biss and Rodri (Bentancur) were outstanding. They were really key for us today. The beauty of Lucas is that he fills that sort of role really well from a defensive point of view and the reason I put Biss in there today, I knew that we were going to need that from him, the way Bodo set up and their ability to try and gain momentum as they build up their play. I thought Biss and Rodri were going to be key for us stemming that, and that's how it proved. I thought Biss was brilliant. Look, he's had an up and down year like all of us, but I've still got full belief in him and full confidence that on a day like today he could do a really good job for us and I thought he was outstanding."
Ange on the second leg - and playing on an artificial playing surface in Bodo...
"Yeah, look it is on artificial grass, but it’s still a game of football. I’ve been there, played there with Celtic, I know the experience and what is important for us is we need to replicate what we did today. Irrespective of the surface, if we’re as disciplined and as organised as we were today, with and without the ball, it won’t matter what the surface is, I think it will make it really difficult for us to be stopped."
Ange on the Bodo/Glimt's late goal to make it 3-1...
"I thought we were similarly dominant against Frankfurt and we ended up with 1-1 (in the first leg), but I think when you perform like we did tonight and like we did against Frankfurt at home, it gives you that belief that you can go away and win there as well. I think that is the most important thing. I certainly don’t think the scoreline reflects our dominance in the game today, but we have to accept that. We’re still in a really good position and it’s about now replicating what we did today on Thursday."
Ange on getting the job done...
"It is not about feeling calm, like I said you just get belief (from the performance). I get that Bodo away is a difficult fixture, but so was Frankfurt away and we went there knowing we had to win to get through and I thought the lads handled it really well. I think in Europe this year we’ve been really good at managing whatever situation we’re in. We’ve had some games where AZ we lost away from home, but had to come back and showed real calm and composure to win to get through here. I think all those experiences give me the belief we can go there and get the job done."