On Thursday night, Tottenham Hotspur defeated AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League, telling the story of two football players at radically different ages.
Two athletes that have been together for almost 20 years. One is nearing 500 performances in their career, while the other is making their senior stage debut for the seventh time.
Although Mikey Moore, a 17-year-old wonderkid, has hardly left Farmer Maggot’s Farm, to use Lord of the Rings terminology, and Fraser Forster are at radically different stages of their football careers, Tottenham’s close victory over AZ Alkmaar in North London demonstrated that age truly is just a number.
Spurs’ backup goalie, 36, Forster, played for the first time since the team’s EFL Cup triumph over Coventry City five weeks prior.
And Forster turned back time by leaping to his right to stop Alexandre Penetra from handing the Eredivisie team an unexpected lead early on, replacing the rested Guglielmo Vicario.
In order to guarantee that Richarlison’s penalty in the 53rd minute would be the only goal in a fiercely contested match, the former Celtic and Southampton custodian would then outsmart Mayckel Lahdo one-on-one in the second half, denying the AZ substitute.
Tottenham goalkeeper Fraser Forster frustrates AZ Alkmaar
“I believe we had enough opportunities to attack. We didn’t. Infuriated by his team’s failure to overcome a goalie who is nearing the end of his career, AZ coach Maarten Martens laments, “Then, you leave something on the table.”
“We simply didn’t make it. To score, you simply need to maintain that freshness. The secret is that. We simply haven’t been successful yet.
“On a few occasions, we’ve really come close. These items need to be improved by a few percent. Our chances were two, three, and four. We failed to complete them, and we gave up a penalty at the back.
“Unfortunately.”
The save that kept Pinetra out was deemed “beautiful” by the Dutch journal De Stentour.
Forster, meanwhile, was named the Man of the Match by Volkskrant. The sands of time have not yet dulled his “fine” reflexes.
Although Tottenham could rest on the Wall of Wallsend at one end, Mikey Moore, 17,’s jinking feet and explosive acceleration at the other end were what made the match largely unforgettable.
When James Maddison claimed that Moore was doing a rather credible Neymar tribute act out on the left, he was only half kidding. At times, Tottenham legend Glenn Hoddle found it hard to comprehend what he was witnessing.
Ange Postecoglou and Dutch media laud Spurs’ Mikey Moore
Volkskrant continues, “The AZ defence had its hands full with Tottenham.” And especially Moore, who is a fantastic dribbler.
“The excellent play of [winger Ernest] Poku in particular was a boost for the Alkmaar team.” However, Mikey Moore, a fellow dribbler, had the night.
On matchday two, Moore shone on the right side as they defeated Ferencvaros 2-1.
However, Moore is more effective on the left, where he can drive at the centre of the opponent backline and keep them guessing, according to Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou.
After Moore missed a great opportunity to open his Spurs account at the far post and complete an otherwise outstanding performance, Postecoglou stated during his own press conference that “he has to work on his heading.” He was given a few of those chances. He is not the finished item.
However, he has a really mature perspective. He is unfazed by those things. He won’t back down the next time if he attempts to take a guy on and it doesn’t work out.
He appears more at ease on the left, but I played him out on the right. However, while he is on the right, he still makes a contribution to the situation.
It’s not as though he’s completely lost. He views football with a very mature perspective.
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