David Bentley had nothing but praise for Tottenham Hotspur after their composed display against Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League – now he wants them to go one step further and beat Manchester United in the final.
Tottenham Hotspur put in a professional performance against Norwegian champions Bodo/Glimt in the second leg of their Europa League semi-final tie, beating the Eliteserien side 2-0.
It finished 5-1 on aggregate, a scoreline that told the full story of Tottenham’s dominance across both legs.
Heading into the second leg, Bodo/Glimt had maintained a perfect record at home in the knockout stage of the Europa League, but Tottenham ended that run with a composed win at the Aspmyra Stadion, effectively bringing the Norwegian side’s European journey to a halt.
Now, an all-English final awaits. Manchester United beat Spanish side Athletic Bilbao 4-1 at Old Trafford, and 7-1 on aggregate, setting up an intriguing clash with Tottenham at San Mames.
David Bentley praises Tottenham performance
Both clubs may be struggling for form in the Premier League, with Manchester United and Tottenham sitting 15th and 16th respectively, and neither side escaping criticism.
But following Spurs‘ latest triumph, TNT Sports pundit David Bentley had high praise for the north London side.
MORE SPURS STORIES
The former Tottenham midfielder admitted he felt slightly nervous ahead of the match given Tottenham’s up-and-down season, but quickly applauded the team’s effort, branding the display as both outstanding and professional.
Speaking to TNT Sports, Bentley said: “Happy night, I was nervous a little bit before the game, just with the conditions, with the sort of season Tottenham have had, and you just think, ahh please do not.
“But I thought they turned up, they were outstanding. Real professional performance and they have got to a final and it is beautiful, go on and win it and beat Man United, happy days.”
Spurs show confidence despite Bodo/Glimt’s artificial pitch
Of course, there had been plenty of noise around the artificial turf at Bodo/Glimt’s stadium before kick-off.
The general consensus was that Tottenham might find it difficult to adapt to the unusual surface, but the visitors were impressive from the first whistle right until the final one.
There were a number of standout performers for Tottenham throughout the match, with the team looking solid both in attack and defence.