Breathtaking Borussia Dortmund show Tottenham how far they still have to go

Thomas Tuchel's side gave a demonstration in the level Spurs must reach if they are to go toe-to-toe with Europe's elite in the Champions League next season.

For Tottenham, this season has been a resounding triumph. Mauricio Pochettino has taken a team that many expected would finish in a continental qualification spot - maybe even a Champions League place given the right run of results - and turned them into title challengers.

But their two Europa League matches against Borussia Dortmund have demonstrated that even if Tottenham win the Premier League this season, they remain some way off the level required to compete with the continent's top sides.

Put simply, Dortmund outclassed Tottenham in both legs. Pochettino rested a number of players - most notably Harry Kane - but irrespective of that caveat, Dortmund managed to do to Spurs what no Premier League side has done this season: make them look inadequate, ill-equipped and incapable.

Dortmund are a team that belong in the Champions League, suffering only from an anomaly of a season and hampered by the Bayern Munich behemoth in the Bundesliga. Spurs, on the other hand, are a team only now adjusting to the reality of the opposition they will face on a more regular basis next season. That their Champions League qualification appears guaranteed in March is a testament to just how fantastic their campaign has been, but there is work to do if they really wish to establish themselves as a European force.

The game was perhaps already up before kick-off on Thursday night, with Spurs 3-0 down from the first leg, but Dortmund’s route to the next round was sealed after 23 minutes. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, a sensation this season, picked the ball up ahead of the Spurs back-line, turned and launched a devilish strike past Hugo Lloris. After 70 minutes, he drifted into the right channel and fired past Lloris once again.

Five down on aggregate, Spurs were incapable of forcing themselves back into the game or the tie. 

Their play was neat but largely ineffective. Too many times Tottenham suffered from Dortmund’s speed in pressing, a trait that Spurs have made a defining characteristic of their own play in the Premier League. 

Ryan Mason was often unable to find a white shirt in space due to Dortmund’s effective defensive movement. Dele Alli, a player who has taken the Premier League by storm, was quiet, shackled by fellow midfield prodigy Julian Weigl. At age 20, Weigl looks set to take a seat alongside Alli at football’s top table.

The second leg did not quite mirror the battering that took place in the first and Son Heung-Min grabbed a consolation strike, but Dortmund illustrated that they possess what Tottenham do not have at present: a world-class forward line.

Kane, Tottenham’s main goal threat, was on the bench for both legs, but even he cannot match the mesmeric quality of Aubameyang, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Marco Reus. The trio’s attacking movement, interchangeability and decisive touches marked them apart from anything Tottenham have to offer and gave Spurs an indication of what they should expect to face in the Champions League next season.

Pochettino’s squad is young and many of their players will become even better yet with age and experience but Dortmund, the best team Spurs have faced in any competition this season, showed them the level they must aspire to reach.

The likes of Alli and Eric Dier will benefit from this kind of exposure but, if Spurs are to make their mark next season, the club must bring in quality around them. Son, Nacer Chadli and Mason all started here but are unlikely to present any real challenge to Europe’s best and Tottenham must spend to upgrade.

This remarkable season has presented Spurs with a chance to establish themselves as part of Europe’s elite, with Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool looking some way away. It is a chance that Tottenham must take, keeping hold of the quality that they have got and investing in elite-level players to further the progress of their wonderful young core.

Goal