Tottenham vs AZ Alkmaar prediction: EUROPE: Europa League – Play Offs betting tips on match 2025-03-12 20:00.
[p]The UEFA Europa League (UEL) is Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou’s last opportunity to live up to his promise of second-season silverware, so he could be excused for feeling a sense of trepidation after his side took a 1-0 deficit home from AZ Alkmaar last week. Consequently, Spurs now have no choice but to win on home soil to progress to their first quarter-final of any UEFA competition since 2018/19. [/p]
[p]Tottenham have scored in an all-time UEL record 29 successive home games, also netting nine times across their four home league phase games this term, so prospects of overturning the deficit could come down to how their defence performs. It hasn’t been especially encouraging on that note, with Spurs keeping just one clean sheet in their last seven matches at any venue across all competitions (W2, D1, L4).  [/p]
[p]History is against AZ here, but there’s no disputing just how impressive they were in the first leg, although head coach Maarten Martens was unhappy that his side didn’t win by a greater margin. It extended their recent record to seven wins from their last nine games across all competitions in any case (D1, L1), which remained untouched after they were granted the weekend off by the Dutch FA. [/p]
[p]That’s precisely the kind of momentum they need to overcome what stands as a dreadful historical away record when visiting these shores. AZ own European football’s worst 100% losing away record against English opposition (L9), falling to eight different English sides along the way – including at Tottenham during the league phase. That visit also forms part of a ten-game winless away run in continental football that dates back to March 2023 (D2, L8). [/p]
[p]Players to watch: Tottenham’s Archie Gray could become the first teenager to start ten games in a single UEL season, and has an impressive average Flashscore rating of 7.0 throughout the campaign despite playing out of position in defence each time. AZ’s top-rated player of the first leg was right-back Seiya Maikuma, who in each of their last two UEL away games recorded either a goal or an assist. [/p]
[p]Hot stat: AZ have kept just two clean sheets in their last 15 away games across all competitions. [/p]
[p][i]Written by Aaron Murphy[/i][/p]