Ange Postecoglou had talked about how keenly Tottenham felt their absence from European competition last season – a “real gap in our calendar”, as the manager put it. And so what was a further 35-minute wait?
It was a night of transport chaos around the stadium, overland trains suspended, roads blocked and kick-off delayed. It set the tone for a wild tie against Qarabag, Tottenham’s Europa League curtain-raiser featuring a red card for their centre-back Radu Dragusin inside seven minutes and countless close shaves in front of their goal. How did they manage a clean sheet? Guglielmo Vicario was a big part of the reason.
