Ange Postecoglou hailed the contributions of his experienced players after Tottenham secured a crucial 3-2 win over Hoffenheim in the Europa League.
The result moves the Spurs closer to a knockout stage spot, with progress guaranteed if they beat Elfsborg at home next Thursday.
Despite dealing with a severely depleted squad – with 14 players unavailable – including 10 due to injuries – Germany managed to secure a victory.
The match ended with five teenagers on the pitch for Spurs, including debutant Callum Olusesi.
Tottenham got off to a flying start with Maddison finding the net for just four minutes. Son added two more goals, one in each half and a strike from Hoffenheim’s Antonin Stach.
There was some late drama when David Mokba headed home for the hosts, but Spurs held on to claim all three points.
Postecoglou spoke to TNT Sports about the leadership of his senior players, saying: “Sonny was brilliant. I thought the older guys today – Benny (Ben Davies), Madders, Rodri (Rodrigo Bentancur), Sonny – they all really stood up.
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“We needed them. When you play in Europe with such a young and inexperienced team, you need your leaders to step up and they did tonight.
“We wanted to be a bit more aggressive and I think that’s when Madders is at his best. In the context of the game, we knew if we could score early and put some pressure on it, it would allow us to get a really good footing in the game. He was good all night – he got a bit tired in the second half but caused them problems throughout.
“It’s not easy to win in Europe. Credit to the boys, I thought we were outstanding in the first half and played really well. We looked a bit tired in the second half but we scored a great goal on and Sonny to give us that extra buffer. We had the students out there at the end and it was a big win. “
A top-eight finish in the Europa League standings would allow Spurs to bypass the Knockouts play-offs and avoid two more games in an already crowded schedule.
For Postecoglou, the chance to earn a rare break in the week is a significant motivator for his injury battler.
“I just told them to enjoy it,” Postecoglou added. “Regardless of the situation we find ourselves in, winning in Europe is a significant victory for us. It gives us a great footing if we get to those top eight spots, giving us a week off, which is almost as good as getting through.
“We have a home game (against Elfsborg) and it’s a great position where we want to finish the top eight – it gives us an extra week of break from the schedule we had and we probably will need it. “
