Tottenham Clinches 'Group A' With Draw

I'm still warming up to the idea of a draw. Should a draw excite me? Is it really something to celebrate? Blame it on all the years of basketball, football, and baseball watching. It's only fitting that Tottenham's Champions League group stage journey ends where it started -- in a tie. A tie that should have been a win nonetheless, but that's besides the point.
It's been a long journey, really long actually. The "six games within the group and one game every two weeks" thing drags on quite a bit. The formula is good because the scheduling essentially builds its own suspense for each game. On the flip side, some fan bases -- Arsenal fans I'm looking at you, have two weeks to think up all of the possible ways your team can blow it.
I have to admit I bought into all the skepticism surrounding Spurs prior to the Champions League. Everyone who seemed to know anything about soccer was basically waiting for them to choke away their first opportunity in 50 years to make a lasting imprint on the national stage. I figured they must know more than me, and what do I really know anyway -- so I equated each moment to familiar Cubs' choke jobs.
First game against Bremen and Spurs jump ahead 1-0 with a gift-wrapped own goal. Fifteen minutes later and they take a 2-0 lead. Game 1 of the 2008 NLDS, Mark DeRosa hits a two run homer in the 4th inning as the Cubs take an early lead, which they eventually surrender. Sure enough, Bremen ties the game just after halftime and doesn't look back. Spurs lose two points and lay the foundation for what looks to be their expected sinking of the ship.
They bounce back in a 4-1 victory at home over Twente. Expected to be the whipping boy of the group, Twente would be heaped with praise at the moment had Spurs not stolen the show and unexpectedly won the Group. At the time, it was a good win for Spurs because they were coming off a Premier League loss, but nothing to get too excited about.

The Inter Milan games sandwiched between the Bremen and Twente rematches were significant because they introduced Gareth Bale to the world. A somewhat obscure name to most soccer fans, Bale burst onto the scene with a three goal performance in the first leg against Inter. He single-handedly carved up Inter's defense and was really the only bright spot in a game that Tottenham had trailed 4-0 at one point. He topped that in the second leg, producing one magnificent run after another and crossed the ball flawlessly to set up two more goals. Bale's play became one of the great stories of the Group Stages, resulting in an onslaught of rumors linking the 21 year-old to a number of big clubs.
A 3-0 blowout at home seemed to be appropriate for a Spurs team that was coming off the high of beating the defending European Champions and a Bremen team that had been shutout at home by Twente. Spurs and Twente both went out in resounding fashion, scoring three times a piece. Both teams already had sealed their fate and played into the wackiness that swirled around this game since the very beginning. I've never seen a goalie whiff like Boschker did...never. Robert Green's mishap looked forgivable compared to that.
Other than Bale, the biggest Champions League story surrounding Tottenham was their home versus road performance. At home they were brilliant, outscoring their opponents 10-2 en route to three wins. On the road, they were outscored 9-8, in two draws and one loss. They need to clear their road woes up. It's been a problem for them all season, including the Premier League. It's not the results that are disappointing, you can live with two draws and a loss on the road, but surrendering nine goals in three games is inexcusable.
But now is not the time to dwell on the negative. This is a historic accomplishment for Spurs. Not only do they advance to the knockout stage, but they earned the top seed in Group A, so they can avoid some of the heavy hitters in the next round.
Let's party like it's 1961. President Kennedy, West Side Story, crumbling US diplomatic relations, but most importantly, quality Spurs football.