Spurs manager Postecoglou: Playing at Ferencvaros is always a tough challenge

Asked if the Hungarian side were better than when he faced them in 2021 with Celtic, the Australian coach commented that they had definitely improved. He noted their technical abilities and tactical awareness have notably progressed since their last encounter.

“Hard to say. I do remember both with Celtic and today, I knew today the supporters create a fantastic atmosphere here. You can see why Ferencvaros have such a strong home record and not just domestically but in Europe. 

“They're hard to beat here because the supporters create a great atmosphere, I remember that from when we played them with Celtic and we had to work hard that day to get a win, 2-1 I think if I remember correctly. It was a tight game today as well and similar to today. 

“I played against AZ when Pascal was coach there and similar they try to play a high-tempo, high-energy game which is what we want to do. We knew it would be a difficult challenge, but I think for the rest of this Europa League campaign at home they are going to be a challenge for any team.”

He added: “To a certain extent (surprised by their fast start). I knew what to expect because the supporters create a great energy and the players have energy at the start. But we always know that no team is fitter than us and we will always finish strong. They had a couple of chances but we were still in the game, still controlling the game. 

“We created a couple of opportunities ourselves. After that 20 minutes I knew we would get stronger and stronger. It didn’t surprise me. We spoke about it before the game. Every time we play away in Europe, that first 20 minutes is pretty important because the crowd is excited and all the players have energy. It is inevitable that the home team are going to have some period of dominance and you have to be strong. I thought we were strong and we eventually broke them down and got our goal.”