HARD SLOG IS SPOT ON FOR SPURS
IF this season of wonderful opportunities results in Tottenham going home with nothing, it will not be because of a lack of favour in big refereeing decisions. It will not be down to an absence of hard work, either.
For the second time in a week, they received an important penalty that might have been waved away.
Unlike the Manchester City game last Sunday, the key moment was not riddled with farce, although Ben Davies might still feel a touch fortunate to have won the benefit of the doubt when he looked for contact and found it in the first half.
The whistle went, Nacer Chadli did his bit from the spot and Tottenham had the lead.
They ultimately gave it up to a deflected shot from Federico Bernardeschi in the second half, the third such advantage they have coughed up in the Europa League this season. But unlike the Tottenham of recent campaigns, there was no rolling over in the face of pressure.
Fiorentina surged, pressed and shot on sight in the final throes but Tottenham held on.
Backbone has been t he key addition to this squad since they last turned up in this city a year ago and made a weak exit from the same stage of the competition.
Instead, Spurs leave this time with the advantage of an away goal against a side which sits third in Serie A.
They also got out of town with no suspension for Dele Alli, who lives to play another day after getting away with only a yellow card for kicking Nenad Tomovic when the Fiorentina defender was lying on the ground.
Daft, unnecessary and not the first incident of its kind from the 19-year-old.
And yet it was almost lost in the details of another impressive performance. He picked out passes, made interceptions, delivered his flicks and pulled off his tricks. He was probably the best player on the pitch, based on his first-half performance.
Manager Mauricio Pochettino will still have a word in his ear, though, to smooth an unwanted edge from an otherwise excellent talent.
Pochettino said: ‘ We need to look at the video and try to teach him.
‘He is a young player and he has a lot to learn about elite football. It is his first season in the Premier League, at Tottenham. He came f rom League One and he needs to learn a lot, to still learn.
‘But I didn’t see it myself. Some people say yes, some say no. I don’t know.’
Aside from the flashpoints, this was a result that vindicated the l esser- used elements of Pochettino’s squad.
He made six changes to the side which beat City, most notably leaving Harry Kane on the bench until midway through the second half, but still obtained a creditable result.
Pochettino, who is adamant that his target is to win the Europa League, despite any temptation to load his aces in favour the Premier League and FA Cup, added: ‘It was a tough game, but they are a very good team. Now the tie is open and we have to be ready for Crystal Palace i n the FA Cup on Sunday, which is another tough game.
‘But we have a strong squad to try to fight for every competition.
‘We need to use all of the squad and I am happy with all of the players that played here.’
Initially, there was not nearly so much to shout about for Tottenham. The opening 25 minutes were bland, until Christian Eriksen had a shot tipped over and Alli kicked Tomovic in the ribs.
Mauro Zarate, of West Ham until January, then blew a couple of excellent chances for the home side before Davies won a penalty after finding contact with Tomovic.
Chadli scored the penalty for his sixth goal of the season in all competitions and Fiorentina levelled through Bernardeschi on 59 minutes, helped by a deflection off Ryan Mason.
It could have got worse for Spurs but they fought for what they had.
That, and a bit of luck, might yet prove decisive in this promising campaign.