Maddison and Solanke react to Vicario’s message after Tottenham disappointment
Guglielmo Vicario has taken to social media with a determined message after Tottenham’s hopes of progressing in the Europa League took a blow against Eintracht Frankfurt.
The Italian shot stopper picked the ball out of his own net with just six minutes on the clock, as Frankfurt forward Hugo Ekitike showed why he is being tracked by multiple Premier League sides ahead of the summer transfer window.
Ekitike drove inside onto his favoured right-foot and unleashed a powerful low strike into the bottom corner to put the visitors in front.
Ange Postecoglou’s side did not let their heads drop, however, with James Maddison weaving his way into the box before finding Pedro Porro whose clever back heel finish levelled the scores at 1-1.
Tottenham will now need to come away with a win at Deutsche Bank Park next week if they are to progress into the next stage of the Europa League.
Tottenham’s goalkeeper shares a positive message ahead of second-leg
In a message via Instagram on Thursday night (10 April), Vicario posted a series of images from the match with the caption: “All to play for in the second leg.” alongside a hashtag of “#COYS”.
In response to the message, Tottenham teammates Maddison, Djed Spence, Micky van de Ven, Dominic Solanke and Porro all liked the post.
Posetcoglou needs to keep his goalkeeper and defenders fit
Football Insider Verdict
With Tottenham’s hopes of qualifying for European football next season through the Premier League all but done, Postecoglou will need to wrap his first choice defence in cotton wool prior to their second-leg against Frankfurt.
The Lilywhites have endured a torrid campaign in terms of injuries with Cristian Romero, Van de Ven, Porro and Destiny Udogie all missing significant spells.
With his preferred defensive options back available, Postecoglou’s side looked much more assured out of possession and limited the visitors to just four shots across the game.
| Tottenham’s win rate with and without Vicario | Percentage |
| With Vicario | 50% |
| Without Vicario | 38% |
Looking back, there was little they could do about the quality of Ekitike’s goal and if it was not for an incredible display from Vicario’s opposite number Kaua Santos, then Tottenham would have won the first-leg.
The aim for Postecoglou will be to balance meeting expectations in the league with keeping his players fit for Europe, as he hunts down a trophy to secure his long-term future at the club.