At least for me, the highlight of Tottenham Hotspur’s 3-1 win over AZ Alkmaar, a result that sent them to the quarterfinals of the Europa League after trailing 1-0 after the first leg, was the third and final goal from Wilson Odobert. That one not only proved to be the winner of the tie, but also was one of the best Tottenham team goals we’ve seen in a very long time.
The video won’t embed in Chorus for some reason, but in the event you haven’t seen the goal, you can watch it here.
After the match, SpursPLAY interviewed James Maddison about the match and about the goals, one of which he of course scored. I thought his comments about Spurs’ third goal, which Odobert tapped in at the back post after a clever backheel flick from Dominic Solanke, were especially interesting.
Below is the video, which is about 7 minutes long, but I’m transcribing the relevant bit which comes at 1:10”.
“To be fair to the gaffer and the coaches, we’ve worked on that this week. There was literally a carbon copy of that move against AZ in the group stage here that didn’t lead to a goal, but we came up low down the left-hand side and Ben [Davies] played it into me and I managed to roll away from my man and I put Timo [Werner] on the break. We didn’t score from that exact attack.
“We managed to get a cross in and get a corner [that night], but we worked on Djed going low and me supporting really low in the build-up because their midfield has a lot of distance to cover. I checked my shoulder and the defender was rushing to press me and sometimes the best touch you can have is actually not to touch it at all.
“I almost faked and a little drop of the shoulder, I let it run across me and then I have the power runners like Djed and Sonny, so I let them go because they are a little bit quicker than me.
“So, I did my job, Djed and Sonny, beautiful overlap from Djed – again credit to the gaffer and the coaches, we work on the overlaps and the winger being in at the back stick. How many times have you seen Brennan Johnson score that goal at the back stick and today it was Wilson. It’s something we work on and I think they’ll be pleased with that.”
I love videos like this of players talking through goals and their experiences, and especially when Maddison does it. Madders has an exceptionally good football brain which comes through when he gives interviews like this. I found it especially interesting to hear that Spurs worked on that exact play in training recently, and that Maddison remembered the similar play against AZ in their 1-0 group stage win at the Tottenham Stadium earlier this season. It’s a brief glimpse into Ange-ball and what Ange Postecoglou wants from his offense when it’s clicking.
That goal was super fun not just because of the flick and the exciting tap in, but also in the nature of the buildup, how Spence was drilled to play the ball low on the cutback, and how it was fully a team effort where everyone was on the same page.
Spurs haven’t had a whole lot to feel good about this season, so it’s important that we acknowledge the good stuff when it comes. This was a good goal, and Maddison’s explanation of it made it even better, in my eyes.
