Az Alkmaar secured a crucial 1-0 victory over Tottenham in the first leg of her Ko-Knockout tie.
The home team used defensive decay while visitors were kept in chess.
Lucas Bergvall’s own goal in the first half turned out to be crucial because Spurs could not register a single shot on the finish throughout the game.
Despite a dominant proportion of possessions, Tottenham tried to create meaningful opportunities, with the disciplined defense of AZ and the aggressive press ensured that her leadership remained intact.
The Men of Posetecoglou were not inspired, while the hosts were fully exploited by their chic parts.
The game started for AZ Hell, and Lahdo and Moller Wolfe combined well on the left.
In an early setback, however, Lahdo was replaced by injuries, replaced by Kasius.
Spurs dominated the possession in the opening exchanges, but AZ remained compact and frustrated their Premier League opponents.
🔥 𝐓𝐄𝐀𝐌#Akalmaar #The #Uel #Thefutureisours pic.twitter.com/honh0ojfoy
– The (@acalkmaar) March 6, 2025
The breakthrough came in the 18th minute. A corner from Koopmeiners was disapproved by Parrott and sent the ball over the six-yard box, where Bergvall accidentally turned him into his own network.
It was a catastrophic moment for Spurs who gave AZ with her first real attack.
Spurs tried to react, but their efforts were tame. Johnson shot from a distance and Maddison and son wasted a promising free kick routine.
In the meantime, AZ won in relation to the trust, and Parrott missed a gold chance to double their lead after being played through one to one.
Vicario’s quick reactions contested his former teammate and held Tottenham’s deficit at half -time.
Postecoglou reacted through a half -time substitution and led Wilson Odobert instead of the ineffective Mathys Tel.
However, the fights of Spurs continued. Her balance sheet in the first half of just two shots was tightened by a second half, in which AZ had interrupted control despite Tottenham’s attempted tactical shifts.
AZ almost extended their leadership when Pokus Driven shot was professionally stopped by Vicario.
In the meantime, Spurs continued to lack the efforts as the son and mountain Vall. Their lack of tips was summarized by its persistent inability to worry AZ keeper Owusu-Moduro.
A flood of substitutions followed when Postecoglou was looking for a way back into the game. Captain Heung-Min’s son, who was mostly anonymous, was withdrawn for Dominic Solanke, while Maddison made a seat for Pape Sarr.
Pedro Porro also replaced Destiny Udogie to add more dynamics on the flank. Despite these changes, Spurs remained lackluster when attacking.
AZ still looked dangerous during the break, and Koopmeiners pulled the threads in midfield. Poku saw another shot over the bar, while Maikuma and Gray Tottenham’s backline were busy.
The game became more and more physical, with Bentancur, Koopmeiners and Poku received yellow cards in a heated second half.
When the final pipe blew, AZ celebrated a well -deserved victory, while Spurs was frustrated by her lack of attack impulse.
Tottenham has to find a way to break down the defense of AZ to lift the deficit and to keep their European hopes alive.
