Spurs were keen to eliminate the possibility of another season without any trophies altogether, given their prospects of winning domestic hardware remained at least one year away. In the 26th minute, Son Heung-min dispossessed Wouter Goes outside the Alkmaar box, relieving anxiety in the crowd after a relatively cagey start.
Wilson Odobert fired towards the danger area after Dominic Solanke grabbed the loose ball. Now level in the tie, Spurs were clearly boosted and came close to getting a second before half-time, when Son grabbed the ball around the halfway line and drove into the heart of the AZ defence, before curling an attempt goalwards. Rome-Jayden Owusu-Oduro got down low to save on that occasion and preserve aggregate parity up to HT. However, Spurs would extend their advantage just three minutes of the restart, when Pape Matar Sarr sped up the pitch before finding up Son, who lay it to James Maddison to sneak his finish past the AZ goalie.