Tottenham Hotspur won their first title since 2008 after defeating Manchester United 1-0 in the UEFA Europa League final. This was a stressful and breath-throwing 90 minutes in Bilbao.
The match was decided by Brennan Johnson's goal right before the end of the first half. Despite their luck, Spurs and coach Ange Postecoglou will not care.
The disjointed nature of the goal is suitable for a low-quality match from start to finish. Tottenham and Man United are currently ranked 17th and 16th respectively in the Premier League.
The Red Devils struggled to create clear chances as they tried to return to the game. Micky van de Ven had to make a spectacular clearance right on the goal line to block Rasmus Hojlund's header. And Luke Shaw's opportunity in extra time was also greatly saved by Guglielmo Vicario.
For Tottenham, this is their first title in 17 years and a place in the UEFA Champions League next season. For Man United, this is the first time they have not participated in the European Cup since the 2013 2014 season and their future is uncertain under Ruben Amorim.
For Postecoglou, he has faced mockery this season. Especially since the Australian strategist confidently declared that he always won the title in his second season at a club.
For Celtic in Scotland, Postecoglou won the domestic treble for the second year. At Yokohama F. Marinos in Japan, he also brought home their first J1 League title in 15 years. In Australia, Postecoglou also won the AFC Asian Cup in 2015. At Brisbane Roar, it was their first domestic double.
However, Tottenham's inability to win a title has been deeply ingrained in their minds. Especially when their domestic campaign has been continuously failed with 21 losses.
But Postecoglou kept his promise when he decided to give up playing "Angeball" in the most important match. This is a style that has helped him gain a lot of admiration in his first year at the club.
Spurs have been more practical in the Europa League knockout round, but the second half against Man United was unlike anything we have seen from Tottenham. They defended tightly and gave the ball to their opponents. And this tactic has been effective.
The question now is whether this success will be enough to convince Tottenham's board that they should continue to trust Postecoglou's project.
"It's hard to express emotions in words. I am extremely proud of the players. This is an incredible group of players, they fought together to bring glory to the club, they deserve to be praised.
I made a decision in January that this was the trophy we were aiming for. And I feel we can win this trophy. The whole team took it step by step, after reaching the final, we felt we could win the final match. And we did it," said the Australian.
