Dutch press rave about two Tottenham stars; 'the evening belonged' to one 'wonderful' Spurs player

It was a tale of two footballers at very different ends of the age spectrum as Tottenham Hotspur saw off AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League on Thursday night.

Two players with nearly 20 years between them. One closing on on 500 career appearances, and the other featuring for just the seventh time on the senior stage.

But while Fraser Forster and Mikey Moore may be at completely opposite stages of their footballing journey – the 17-year-old wonderkid has barely crossed Farmer Maggot’s Farm, in Lord of the Rings terms – Tottenham’s narrow victory over AZ Alkmaar in North London was proof that age really is just a number.

Forster, Spurs’ 36-year-old back-up goalkeeper, made a first outing since the EFL Cup victory over Coventry City five weeks earlier.

And, in place of the rested Guglielmo Vicario, Forster rolled back the years as he sprang to his right to prevent Alexandre Penetra giving the Eredivisie outfit a shock lead early on.

The former Celtic and Southampton stopper would then outwit Mayckel Lahdo one-v-one in the second-half, denying the AZ substitute to ensure that Richarlison’s penalty in the 53rd minute would be the only goal of a tightly-contested encounter.

Tottenham goalkeeper Fraser Forster frustrates AZ Alkmaar

“I think we had enough moments to strike. We didn’t. Then, you leave something on the table,” sighs a disappointed AZ coach Maarten Martens, frustrated by his side’s inability to find a way past a goalkeeper approaching his fourth decade on planet earth.

“We just didn’t succeed. You just have to keep that freshness to score. That’s the key. We just haven’t succeeded yet.

“We’ve really come close a few times. Those are things that have to be a few per cent better. We had two, three, four really big chances. We didn’t finish them and, at the back, we conceded a penalty.

“A shame.”

Dutch publication De Stentor described the save which kept Pinetra out as nothing short of ‘beautiful’.

Volkskrant, meanwhile, labelled Forster the Man of the Match. His ‘fine’ reactions as yet undimmed by the sands of time.

But while Tottenham could rest upon the Wall of Wallsend at one end, it was the jinking feet and explosive acceleration of 17-year-old Mikey Moore at the other which lit up an otherwise largely forgettable encounter.

James Maddison was only half-joking when he said Moore was performing a pretty convincing Neymar tribute act out on the left. Tottenham icon Glenn Hoddle could barely believe what he was seeing at times.

Ange Postecoglou and Dutch media laud Spurs’ Mikey Moore

“The AZ defence had its hands full with Tottenham,” Volkskrant add. “And, in particular, the wonderful dribbler Moore.

“For the Alkmaar team, the good play of [winger Ernest] Poku in particular was a boost. But the evening belonged to fellow dribbler, Mikey Moore.”

Moore dazzled on the right-hand side in the 2-1 win over Ferencvaros on matchday two.

Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou feels that Moore is more effective on the left, however, where he can drive at the heart of the opposition backline and keep them guessing.

“He has to work on his heading,” Postecoglou said during his own press conference, Moore missing an excellent chance to open his Spurs account at the far post and cap an otherwise exceptional performance. “He had a couple of those opportunities. He is not the complete product.

“[But] he has got a really mature outlook. He doesn’t let those things faze him. If he tries to take a player on and it doesn’t work he won’t shy away from it the next time.

“I played him out on the right but he definitely looks more comfortable on the left. But in the context, he still contributes when he is on the right.

“It’s not like he’s totally lost out there. He has got a great mature outlook on football.”