The relief was palpable for Tottenham after their 2-1 win over Manchester City in the Carabao Cup last 16. As the final whistle blew, head coach Ange Postecoglou calmly walked onto the pitch and the anthem "Glory, Glory Tottenham Hotspur" blared from the stadium speakers.
The song seems out of place at this moment in time. It has been almost 17 years since Spurs last won a trophy. However, in Postecoglou's second season at Totenham, the aim is clearly to end that.
A narrow 2-1 win over Man City took them into the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup and one step closer to winning the title, but their performance still raised questions about their ability to truly compete.
"I think we defended well because we didn't really let the opponent create too many clear-cut chances," said Postecoglou. "We had some really good chances to kill the game off, but we didn't take them. But the players were resilient to extend the play."
There were clear positives to take from Tottenham's win. Beating Manchester City - a team Postecoglou described as the "gold standard" - is never a trivial matter. The Spurs are the first team to knock out the reigning Premier League champions this season.
Spurs have been criticised this season for repeatedly losing their advantage in matches, most recently losing 3-2 to Brighton despite having a two-goal advantage. In domestic competitions alone, the win over Man City was the first time Tottenham had beaten an opponent by just one goal.
The Australian tactician remains adamant in his belief that Spurs can turn things around, from ditching the 'Spursy' nickname to winning trophies.
"It's about constantly pushing this group to be the team we want to be. We're not there yet, to be fair. As I said yesterday, I'm really optimistic about this group of players. They're at a very high level and we just have to keep focusing on that," Postecoglou said.
Spurs fans will be praying that Postecoglou is right. They sang with relief after the final whistle. "Glory, Glory Tottenham Hotspur" continued to blare over the speakers, followed by Gala's "Freed from Desire".
However, an hour later, Spurs fans' joy was short-lived as Tottenham faced Manchester United at home in the quarter-finals, meaning another tough game as they bid to lift their first trophy since 2008.
