This was almost the perfect Tottenham Hotspur European semi-final display. In a week's time we'll know whether almost becomes enough.

Unlike the quarter-final home tie against Frankfurt, made more of their dominance with three goals from their 24 shots on goal. Again they had chances galore and a scoreline of 5-0 or 6-0 would not have flattered the north London side. Instead they gave Bodo/Glimt something to seize on to late on with a goal from their only shot on target on Thursday evening.

That the Norwegian side's manager Kjetil Knutsen went over and punched the air repeatedly at his club's fans after the final whistle following a 3-1 defeat says everything about his belief when it comes to the second leg on a plastic pitch just above the Arctic Circle next week.

"I think the goal is really important," he told the media afterwards. "First of all, if you see when Tottenham conceded a goal, they were really disappointed. They lose energy and I think we got a lot of energy because of the goal.

"I think we can take the energy from this game into the next game. It’s totally different for us to play at home. I think we still have an opportunity here. We are not the favourites but we will really go for it."

To be fair to Tottenham though, side rose to the occasion along with their fans on a noisy night in N17.

It was how a European night under the lights should be with the pre-match atmosphere crackling as the supporters boomed out the players' chants, waved flags places on all the seats and then as the teams emerged and the roar was deafening so the south stand formed an eye-catching tifo, organised by THFC Flags, that declared 'To Dare Is To Do'.

The Spurs players for the most part did. This wasn't exactly Angeball, more an adapted version of it, more direct and with no hesitation in hitting long passes to or over the top of the Bodo backline to willing runners.

That's been the pattern this season with different tactical approaches - or at least the ones that have worked more often - coming in the Europa League. On this occasion, Spurs had less of the possession, with 41.8% of it and only 353 passes to the visitors' 519, yet they dominated the play.

Tottenham had 42 touches in the opposition box compared to Bodo's eight and it took just 38 seconds for one of them to bring the opening goal of the game.

, who had replaced the unfortunate after the Swede picked up an ankle injury in training on the eve of the game, won the ball back around the Bodo box with a display of strength.

Pedro Porro, whose quality with the ball was unmatched on the night, sent a cross to the far post where Richarlison headed it back to the other post where Brennan Johnson guided a header past the goalkeeper for his 17th goal of the season.

The majority of the 61,327 fans inside the stadium went wild. It was the best possible start to the game.

Spurs continued to carve out chances and after , Micky van de Ven and Destiny Udogie sent efforts over the crossbar and Richarlison a shot at the goalkeeper, so Maddison doubled the lead.

Porro again was on hand with the perfect ball, clipped over the top and the midfielder met it with his run, controlled the ball and sent a scuffed shot rolling through the gap between goalkeeper and defenders and into the bottom left corner.

A third goal almost arrived before the break when Rodrigo Bentancur chested down a loose ball and unleashed a volley that the keeper sprang to his right and pushed away.

However, an effort over the bar as Bentancur lost Ole Didrick Blomberg in the box provided a warning that Spurs should have heeded for later in the game.

Tottenham kept pushing in the second half to bury the tie and a third goal arrived thanks to VAR's intervention.

Cristian Romero was kicked in the Bodo box and while the on-pitch officials missed it, the referee was sent over to his pitch-side monitor.

The penalty was awarded and after a bit of kidology as the Bodo players tried to distract Maddison, he handed the ball to Solanke to roll a calm kick into the net.

Even with the loss of Maddison to a knee issue, Spurs spurned opportunities galore to put the semi-final to bed.

Solanke sent a deflected effort wide following more good work from Bissouma. Romero headed the subsequent corner inches wide.

Solanke was next to depart the action with a quad problem but the chances kept coming as Udogie, Dejan Kulusevski and Mathys Tel all got into good positions but saw their efforts deflected behind.

Football will always punish profligacy. In the 83rd minute, Bodo's first shot at goal, from Ulrik Saltnes, deflected off Bentancur and into the net.

That rocked Spurs and for a while they looked shell-shocked even if ultimately Guglielmo Vicario remained without anything to do in his goal.

When the final whistle blew so there was a feeling of celebration tinged with a little fear - after this season especially - that a two-goal lead might still be a fragile one at a place where Bodo rarely lose.

Yet it's simple enough. If Tottenham play again next Thursday night as they did on this evening then they will take their place in this month's Europa League final in Bilbao alongside what looks likely to be Manchester United at this point.

Postecoglou will need his players to step up again and on Thursday night there was an unlikely hero in the centre of the park in the shape of Yves Bissouma.

The 28-year-old is more than capable of pulling off a big performance in a big game, but this season has rarely seen him at his best for Tottenham.

It was a timely reminder of his ability when he's switched on for 90-plus minutes as he came in for the injured Lucas Bergvall and he mopped up everything.

Bissouma made seven ball recoveries, two blocks, one interception and one clearance, while winning the majority of his ground duels. The ball also kept falling to him on the edge of the Bodo box from corners but a Bissouma goal is a rarity, albeit usually spectacular when one does arrive.

Alongside him Rodrigo Bentancur was mostly excellent, other than those two moments at the end of each half, winning a remarkable 11 out of his 12 duels on the ground and in the air, while also making 10 ball recoveries, two clearances and one interception.

"I thought Biss and Rodri were outstanding," Postecoglou told football.london . "They were really key for us today. The beauty of Lucas is that he fills that sort of role really well from a defensive point of view and the reason I put Biss in there today, I knew that we were going to need that from him, the way Bodo set up and their ability to try and gain momentum as they build up their play. I thought him and Rodri were going to be key for us stemming that, and that's how it proved.

"I thought Biss was brilliant. Look, he's had an up and down year like all of us, but I've still got full belief in him and full confidence that on a day like today he could do a really good job for us and I thought he was outstanding."

The two midfielders had to fill the role left by Bergvall, who brings a certain balance to the team's play. The young Swede faced the heartache of missing out on a big European semi-final, on the same night as his brother Theo missed out on Djurgarden's Conference League semi-final as the 20-year-old right-back isn't registered in his club's European squad and arrived only last year so is not on their B list.

Lucas' ankle injury came out of the blue. He was playing a full part in training on Wednesday morning and could be seen energetically buzzing around in a rondo with the likes of Bentancur, Romero and Kulusevski in the early stages of the session.

Maddison had told football.london not long after that Bergvall has been like "a bee" this season with his enthusiasm so it was a fitting image. However, at some point after that and before the final pre-match session ended, the 19-year-old damaged his right ankle.

It is too soon to know whether the teenager will miss all of the final four weeks of the season as Tottenham look to continually assess how his ankle reacts. Seeing him in a protective boot and on crutches at the game was not a positive sign though.

"It's too early to assess," Postecoglou told football.london on Thursday night. "You know, it's just the way our season's gone on unfortunately, it's just hugely disappointing for Lucas, he was obviously really excited.

"He had a big week, re-signing with the club and he's had such a great year for us. Like I said, it's just the way our season's gone, where in training something innocuous like that ends up with him hurting his ankle. We'll just assess over the next few days, let it settle down and we'll find the extent of it."

Bergvall was sat on the sidelines alongside the injured , Radu Dragusin and Dane Scarlett and unregistered players like Antonin Kinsky. Watching Tottenham captain Son on the sidelines is almost as entertaining as watching him during a match.

He lives every moment with the team and celebrates every goal wildly and also has time to keep himself and others amused.

When Dragusin missed out on a high five from a team-mate as they passed the dugout, leaving him sadly and awkwardly hanging his hand in the air so his captain turned and slapped his hand instead. The two could then be seen throwing water bottles in front of them, trying to get them to stand up like a couple of kids.

Son will be hoping to have more to do in the weeks ahead than throwing bottles as Spurs look to get him back from his foot injury.

In his absence, the left wing duties were shared by Richarlison and then Mathys Tel. In the first half, the Brazilian was effective as a physical presence on the ground and in the air, as evidenced by his part in the opening goal.

However, while he got into some good positions, Richarlison's decision-making as a winger was a bit off-key at times and his fitness is not there yet for the pitch-long runs required down the flank. That brought a half-time switch for the more dynamic Tel and Richarlison could get the nod up front at West Ham on Sunday following Solanke's issue.

"Richarlison wasn't injured, it was just a tactical thing. He did a great job for us in the first half, exactly what we needed him to do, but we thought the game would open up in the second half and we got Mathys on for that," explained Postecoglou.

"Dom and Madders, Madders felt a tweak in his knee, but it doesn't sound like it's anything serious, and Dom something similar in his quad, but both of them didn't feel it was anything too significant, but thought it was wise just to take them off at that point."

Tottenham fans will be wary of those words "it doesn't sound like it's anything serious" after a season like this.

Solanke again put in another selfless performance with his running but did get his reward with the penalty, another no-look effort that even he admitted was a little too much.

"I think I was a little bit too cool, but obviously it was another nice penalty and so nice to get another goal in a big game like this," said the beaming striker after netting his 14th goal of the campaign and his 22 goal involvement. In the Europa League alone he has eight goal involvements in 11 matches.

Maddison had handed him the ball moments before the spot kick, taking up the mind games of the Bodo players, and the midfielder was again crucial in a big European match for Spurs.

His run for his goal was perfect and his movement is spotted all the time by Porro and Romero, who have the ability to pick him out with their passes. Maddison now has 23 goal involvements in 45 games this season and seven in his 11 European matches and it was his free-kick that led to Romero being fouled in the box.

"[The move for the second goal] was something that we work on. Madders has scored a few goals like that this season," said Brennan Johnson. "He makes that run really well and Pedro has such good quality so when they get the timing right and Madders can finish it off, it was a really well-worked goal."

The sight of Maddison holding his knee will concern Postecoglou and it's unlikely we'll see the midfielder risked in Sunday's derby.

It's all now about next Thursday and the need for Spurs to turn up and put in a repeat performance.

Dejan Kulusevski, who will likely fill in for Maddison on Sunday, believes the 3-1 scoreline will be enough for Tottenham to take to Norway and he admitted that the team plays differently in continental competition.

"Yes I think so. Happy with the 3-1 win. It is good to be winning an important game like this. So it is perfect," said the Swede. "We are still two up. We are Tottenham and we have to go there and win the game.

"When you do performances like [in Frankfurt], you want to repeat them. I think in Europe, we play a little bit different. We play with less risk and we put the ball up more in the space like we did today and we got to keep doing that in Europe."

Tottenham struggled through on an artificial pitch at Tamworth in the FA Cup this season and on a hybrid one in Alkmaar, but Bodo's pitch at the Aspmyra Stadion will provide another different test.

Kulusevski has experience of playing on such artificial surfaces back in his homeland but expects Spurs to practice on that type of pitch due to the different speed and bounce of it.

"Yes probably we have to do it. It is good for me. I have been playing it in Sweden so I should be prepared," he said. "It is different. It is different football, it is a different pitch. But in life, you have to do what you have to do to find a way to win, and we have got to do that."

Kulusevski was asked about Spurs' constant ability to do things the hard way.

"What do you mean the hard way? We won 3-1!" he hit back. "It will be difficult but life is not easy for anyone.

"We played well. This season has been really disappointing but at least let's finish it in the best possible way. We have got to do everything possible every day to make it happen. [3-1] is a little bit different. Of course 3-0 is perfect, but like I said, life is not perfect."

Postecoglou paid tribute to the Tottenham fans after the match for their impact on proceedings.

"I thought our supporters were outstanding tonight, from the moment we walked out and I think they added the energy to the team. Even us scoring an early goal came from the fact that as soon as the boys walked out, there was a buzz in the stadium and that's a credit to our fans," he said.

"We've obviously had a tough season, but the European nights this year have still been pretty special and they played their part tonight, massive role in us performing in the way we needed to."

After Sunday's basement battle derby at the London Stadium, Tottenham and a hardy band of 400 Spurs fans will make their way to the little town of Bodo, just north of the Arctic Circle.

The town has a population of just under 43,000 people and a stadium that holds just over 8,000. The travelling Tottenham faithful will find a land where daylight currently dominates.

Next Thursday, the sun will not set until around 10.30pm at night as the match is coming to a close and it will rise again just five hours later at 3.30am.

For Spurs and Postecoglou the key now is to ensure the sun does not set on their European adventure and instead rises on a final in Bilbao later this month.

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