5-a-side: 5 takeaways from Tottenham's outstanding win over Eintracht Frankfurt | OneFootball

After the 1-1 draw in the home leg and the recent defensive disaster at Wolves, it was not clear that this result was coming for Tottenham. Even better was the way in which it happened.

1. Micky and Romero back

It has not been the smoothest return for van de Ven and Romero after their long time out with injuries. Romero in particular has not produced the consistent performances we know he can (with the defeat at Wolves being a good example). Even in Frankfurt there were some stray passes early on. As we quickly settled into the game, though, our first-choice center back pair looked increasingly comfortable. It was a great run by Maddison that led to the penalty, but it was a perfect ball from Romero to find him, lifted in between the defenders and tempting Santos out to make the foul. There has been links with Romero moving on but performances like yesterday show how important he is to the team and his ability as a defender. The win in Frankfurt, and a clean sheet against a team that rarely fails to score at home, was a whole team effort. Udogie and Porro were certainly excellent too but having Micky and Romero back and in form is a critical block to build from.

2. Effective Press

The defensive performance started from the front. Dominic Solanke has not always been the goalscoring threat we need this season, and there is more to come from him there, but his work rate is never in question. Solanke led the press and hurried Frankfurt's defenders and keeper into errors. Johnson and Tel followed this lead, Kulusevski improved it further when he came on, and it did make things difficult at times for Frankfurt to build. While it was impossible to quiet that amazing atmosphere the Frankfurt fans generated, this did help to frustrate the opposition. We dropped back in the second half but pressing as we did kept us a little more solid.

Ekitike looked dangerous in the second leg, just as he did in the first. The idea of Spurs signing him in the summer is one that could be very interesting. As well as positional awareness, he provided a threat with the classic "ball over the top", which is something Spurs are really lacking. Ange's system is great when it works but mixing up attacks with something more straightforward at times would be hugely beneficial. A few of Frankfurt's attacks were long balls straight down the middle ("route one" as it is known, although "route two" or "route three" never seem to be a thing). Early on, one of these resulted in Ekitike being through on Vicario and only Micky's ridiculous speed saved us. If not Ekitike, then another striker who offers this type of threat is needed next season.

4. Players backing Ange

"Losing the dressing room" is a cliched phrase but it can happen, and when it does it inevitably spells the end for a manager. Results and performances have not been good this season, of course, but the scenes throughout the game and particularly at the final whistle show the players are fully in this with Ange and his staff. Vicario leaping on to the coaches at the end summed it up. Great to see.

5. The Lucas Bergvall appreciation note

Lucas continues to cement his spot in the 5-a-side appreciation note. The young Swede did not have the greatest of games in the last Europa round, but he has generally outperformed expectations this season. The game in Frankfurt was no exception. Lucas showed his calmness on the ball when needed and put in an excellent shift tracking back as well. Defensive midfield is still an area of need for the summer (and I would like to see a true ball-winner signed for next season, even if they do seem to be going out of fashion a little), but if Lucas is working with Bentancur like this, then we may have enough to get where we need to be this season. Lucas is not shy about putting in a tackle, even if his main strength is on the ball, but that combined with Bentancur's reading of the game formed a decent defensive wall when under pressure. Onto the semi finals. More of the same, please.