Spurs 3 Southampton 1 – Fans react to Levy, Postecoglou; five-minute VAR check; Bergvall impresses

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With pressure mounting on Ange Postecoglou, the Tottenham Hotspur head coach will have been relieved with three points over Southampton, a result that relegated the visiting side.

There was a risk that facing the Premier League’s bottom side, who have only 10 points this season, could have caused an embarrassing afternoon for Spurs, as Leicester City did when they won here in January. And while two goals from Brennan Johnson and a first Premier League goal for Mathys Tel sealed victory, conceding late and struggling to kill the game off in the second half will have done little to appease those disappointed with Postecoglou’s side.

There was a pre-match protest outside the ground against the ownership, as well as chants within the stadium, as anger at how the club is run continues. Following the defeat to Chelsea and this victory, Spurs can now plan for Frankfurt in the Europa League quarter-final first leg on Thursday with Lucas Bergvall and Johnson performing well.

Here, Elias Burke and George Caulkin break down the action from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

How did Spurs fans react to Levy and Postecoglou?

Tottenham remains a club at unease with itself.

Barely 20 seconds had passed before the South Stand began a chant of “We want (Daniel) Levy out.” Not for the first time this season, there had been a demonstration by hundreds of supporters down the Seven Sisters Road where a banner was held up which read “Built a business, killed a football club.” It was also displayed inside the stadium before kick-off and again at half-time.

With Postecoglou denying suggestions he had goaded fans who had sung “You don’t know what you’re doing,” at him during Thursday’s 1-0 defeat to Chelsea – he had cupped an ear with his hand – the feeling remains that Spurs are teetering on a precipice. Whether the topple or pull back will probably be determined by their Europa League quarter-final against Eintracht Frankfurt.

Fans protest before the game (Credit: The Athletic)

In that context, victory over Southampton – who have won a single game in the Premier League since early November – proved very little. Against hapless opponents, whose relegation was confirmed, they were far too strong, but at least it provides them with some precious momentum.

No dissent was aimed at Postecoglou and there was none in return. Why would there be? When the first goal went in, the head coach called over James Maddison to give him instructions. The second brought smiles and high fives with his coaching staff.

(Marc Atkins/Getty Images)

George Caulkin

A five-minute VAR check? 

Bergvall thought he had scored his first Premier League goal in the first half… before VAR intervened.

Not that Postecoglou needed any more convincing that VAR is negatively affecting the flow of football matches, but a five-minute and 25-second wait, according to Opta, between Bergvall volleying into the back of the net and referee Michael Salisbury restarting the game won’t help in easing his frustration.

During the wait, Postecoglou strolled around his technical area and signalled to his coaching staff, making fun of the delay. While Spurs and Southampton fans collaborated in a rendition of “f*** VAR” and boos rang around the stadium, the 59-year-old shrugged his shoulders and pretended to play rock, paper, scissors, suggesting a randomness to the procedure.

Postecoglou spoke against VAR in the post-match conference after the Chelsea defeat, where that night’s video assistant referee, Jarred Gillet recommended referee Craig Pawson check the pitchside monitor before disallowing Pape Matar Sarr’s second-half goal after a lengthy check.

In this case, the goal was chalked off as Romero was found to be offside before heading the ball down to Bergvall in the box.

(Marc Atkins/Getty Images)

Elias Burke

What did Spurs learn before Frankfurt tie?

As European quarter-final tune-ups go, this was about as straightforward as it gets for Tottenham.

Postecoglou made three changes from the side that were beaten 1-0 by Chelsea last Thursday, with building momentum for the season-defining tie against Frankfurt a key consideration. Johnson, who came in for Wilson Odobert, has struggled to make an impact since scoring twice against Ipswich Town in February but made a strong case for selection on Thursday. He scored his 10th and 11th league goals of the season in the first half, the first after a sweeping “Ange-ball” style passage started by an incisive pass from Cristian Romero.

Postecoglou will also be encouraged by the performance of Bergvall, who was taken off at the hour mark against Chelsea, with the head coach citing a lack of physicality after leaving international duty early with illness.

Bergvall impressed against Southampton (Marc Atkins/Getty Images)

Against Southampton, the Swede was dominant, driving through the midfield and reacting quickly to loose balls.

While Southampton offered little resistance, there was a creativity in midfield that has often been absent in recent weeks. James Maddison, who was poor in the first leg against AZ before propelling Spurs to victory with a goal in the second, was instrumental in both goals today.

It’s unlikely Frankfurt will roll over as easily, but if a lack of confidence was an issue ahead of that match, this should at least be a welcome boost on that front.

Elias Burke

What did Postecoglou say?

We will bring you this after he has spoken at the post-match press conference.

What next for Spurs?

Thursday, April 10: Eintracht Frankfurt (Home), Europa League quarter-final first leg, 8pm UK, 3pm ET

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(Top photo: Marc Atkins/Getty Images)

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