Europa League final: Tottenham's last chance for a title – Postecoglou's promise

The Spurs players have gathered in the locker room. They just won the second leg of their Europa League semi-final against Bodø/Glimt 2-0, thus advancing to the final. They gaze silently at their coach, Ange Postecoglou. The video shared by the club shows him wearing a black crew-neck sweater, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows. Pedro Porro enters and interrupts the coach's initial speech: "WAAMOOS!" the right-back shouts to his teammates, who join in the celebration. Then silence again. The coach speaks. He paces back and forth, gesticulating, praising each of his players. "You will do it," he tells them, "you deserve all the credit." He concludes his speech with this plea: "Starting tomorrow, we'll focus, but today we're celebrating."

If Postecoglou has his way, players and fans will be celebrating again on Wednesday evening. That's when Tottenham will face Manchester United in the Europa League final in Bilbao. "I usually win something in my second season," the Australian promised confidently last summer. And a month later, he even reiterated: "I don't usually win something, I always win something in my second year." A bold statement for someone who, while successful with Celtic in Scotland, hasn't yet achieved much at the top European level.

Only three teams in the English Premier League are worse than Spurs. A win tonight would still see the team compete in the Champions League next season. Their first title since winning the League Cup in 2008 could help supporters and club officials forgive their poor league season.

It's hard to imagine how great the celebrations would be if the Australian actually succeeded in winning the Europa League title with Tottenham, thus keeping his word. Especially since the 59-year-old coaches a club that hasn't won anything except the Audi Cup in 17 years and is known throughout Europe for always failing precisely when it's on the verge of success.

Take, for example, the beginning of February: Within a single week, Tottenham squandered two titles. First, Spurs lost 1-0 to Liverpool in the semi-finals of the EFL Cup, and four days later, they were eliminated from the FA Cup by Aston Villa. At that point, they were already in 14th place in the league, with no chance of challenging for the title. Shortly afterward, the team also lost 1-0 in the first leg of their Europa League round of 16 tie against AZ Alkmaar. The coach's promise of a title was almost dashed. Quite a few people were already calling for the Australian's dismissal.

Does Postecoglou regret his statement in light of repeated failures? Quite the opposite: "Why should I regret something I'm proud of?" the coach said in an interview with Optus Sport . So, is this statement a sign of his confidence in the team? Probably not: "No, these are simply the facts," he says – and he's speaking the truth.

The Greek-born Australian's unusual coaching career began in 1996 at South Melbourne FC, where he was already under contract as a player. One year later, he won the Australian championship with them. In 2000, he became the national youth coach and won the U20 Oceania Championship in each of his first two years. He took over at Brisbane Roar in the 2009/2010 season and led the team to the championship a year later. His next stop was the Australian national coach, and in his second year, he won the Asian title. The next logical step? Yokohama F. Marinos, with whom he naturally won the Japanese championship in his second year. Then came the move to Europe, where he repeated the feat with Celtic Glasgow in Scotland. To avoid the media backlash his statements nevertheless generated, he smugly announced that in the future, he would "simply lie. It makes people feel more comfortable."

Despite a mixed season, Postecoglou was able to regain the trust of many fans by reaching the Europa League final. A 3-1 win in the second leg against Alkmaar, which avenged the defeat in the round of 16, the narrow quarter-final victory against Eintracht Frankfurt, and especially the decisive victories against Bodø/Glimt in both semi-finals, gave Spurs supporters hope. The coach's viral speech after reaching the final did the rest. Many fans on social media are once again convinced of their coach.

In the event of a defeat, however, disillusionment is likely to set in. Today's match will determine how the season and the manager are rated. Rumor has it that the club's management's favor, and thus Ange Postecoglou's future at Tottenham, is tied to a win. If Spurs lose, the only remaining basis for the season's evaluation will be the North Londoners' worst placing since the Premier League's inception. If they win, they'll end the season with a European title and qualification for the Champions League—and a promise fulfilled.