But at drinking-up time in the last chance saloon, two-goal Wilson Odobert became the toast of Tottenham's European bounty hunters.
Postecoglou's claim he always wins a trophy in his second season at each club was down to the last drops of credibility until Odobert came to the rescue.
In the space of a week, Spurs went from looking more rattled than a tambourine to calling the tune like a jukebox.
But they turned plain sailing into a four-act drama, swapping a vapid first-leg defeat in Holland eight days ago for a nerve-shredding salvage operation.
If the Thursday Night League is by no means the apex of big clubs' ambitions, it offered Postecoglou a road to salvation.
For Big Ange, this was it - win or bust. It was arguably Spurs' biggest game since the Champions League Final in 2019, simply because it defined whether Postecoglou's two-year project to restore artistic merit as keynote of the club's DNA was riding on it.
And the Spurs boss said: "We've progressed which is the main thing, played pretty well as well.
"I thought we were really in control of the game, we're our own worst enemy at times.
"When we were in control, we let them back in the game and it was nervy at end but we thoroughly deserved to win.
"We scored a great goal from the press and started the second half really well, really should've put the tie away in the first 15/20 minutes but super pleased for the boys."
Despite the manager's appeal for a hostile, intimidating atmosphere, there were still notes of dissent towards chairman Daniel Levy. 'Built A Business, Killed A Football Club' read one banner.
But at least Postecoglou's players were aggressive, committed and had an appetite for confrontation.
Cristian Romero introduced himself to Troy Parrott with an uncompromising challenge which left the former Spurs tr...
Postecoglou's claim he always wins a trophy in his second season at each club was down to the last drops of credibility until Odobert came to the rescue.
In the space of a week, Spurs went from looking more rattled than a tambourine to calling the tune like a jukebox.
But they turned plain sailing into a four-act drama, swapping a vapid first-leg defeat in Holland eight days ago for a nerve-shredding salvage operation.
If the Thursday Night League is by no means the apex of big clubs' ambitions, it offered Postecoglou a road to salvation.
For Big Ange, this was it - win or bust. It was arguably Spurs' biggest game since the Champions League Final in 2019, simply because it defined whether Postecoglou's two-year project to restore artistic merit as keynote of the club's DNA was riding on it.
And the Spurs boss said: "We've progressed which is the main thing, played pretty well as well.
"I thought we were really in control of the game, we're our own worst enemy at times.
"When we were in control, we let them back in the game and it was nervy at end but we thoroughly deserved to win.
"We scored a great goal from the press and started the second half really well, really should've put the tie away in the first 15/20 minutes but super pleased for the boys."
Despite the manager's appeal for a hostile, intimidating atmosphere, there were still notes of dissent towards chairman Daniel Levy. 'Built A Business, Killed A Football Club' read one banner.
But at least Postecoglou's players were aggressive, committed and had an appetite for confrontation.
Cristian Romero introduced himself to Troy Parrott with an uncompromising challenge which left the former Spurs tr...
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Daily Record (Digital) - 1 Issue, March 14, 2025