Tottenham Hotspur was dead.

Metaphorically, of course. But nonetheless deceased.

Six months and two days before its greatest-ever European night, more than half a year before Lucas Moura’s left-footed second-half hat-trick, it was preparing for a burial. Perishing in embarrassment. Or so we thought.

It was nearly 10 o’clock on the night of Nov. 6, 2018. A half-empty Wembley had been overrun by groans. Frustration. Hope turned false. Spurs had stumbled against a Dutch nemesis and were stumbling again. (Sound familiar?) Stadium clocks ticked past 75:00, then past 76, then past 77. With one point from four group games, the same Champions League campaign that will end in Madrid was over.

Wednesday, you see, might not have been the greatest comeback in Champions League history. Tottenham isn’t the biggest underdog to ever reach a final. But this? This is the most preposterous of Champions League stories. The most incomprehensible and volatile and dramatic of Champions League runs.

Because Tottenham has died six 2018-19 European deaths now. And yet somehow, it is still standing – towering above all but Liverpool.

The first death: Heartbreak in Holland

The story begins in Milan and London and Eindhoven, and of course with late goals. How else? Spurs have now endured six group games and three knockout-round ties. The average minute of the latest goal in each of the nine? The 87th.

The first of the nine came in the second minute of stoppage time at the San Siro. Mauro Icardi had canceled out Christian Eriksen’s opener with a luscious volley in the 86th minute. Matias Vecino then won a game many figured would ultimately decide the group. Ben Davies keeled over. Eric Dier pounded the turf.

Two weeks later came Barcelona’s master-class.

Three weeks after that, some curious refereeing, some crossbars struck, and Luuk de Jong’s 87th-minute equalizer in Holland:

The mood at Tottenham had already been soured by stadium delays. Perhaps even still by last season’s Champions League collapse against Juventus as well. And in general, despite the club’s apparent rise, by the longest post-war trophy drought in its history. One point from three matches left Spurs fans to focus on a Premier League that Liverpool and Man City were already galloping away with. A malaise spread. Dreams evaporated.

The second death: Perishing vs. PSV

The 46,588 fans at Wembley on that Wednesday night in November held onto hope. But they quickly lost their grip when De Jong scored after 62 seconds. They fully relinquished it as Spurs attackers ran head-on into last-ditch roadblocks. Tottenham needed to win to maintain any semblance of life. With 15 minutes remaining, it was behind.

Harry Kane, however, preferred to prolong the seemingly inevitable. He hit back on 78 minutes, then saw his soft header deflect off a PSV shoulder, then a PSV thigh, and trickle over the line in the 89th:

For the first time, but certainly not the last, Spurs had cheated death.

The third death: Inter

They still had plenty of uphill climbing to do, though. With four points to Inter’s seven, and with a trip to Camp Nou still ahead, Matchday 5 brought a must-win. With 11 minutes remaining, the deadlock remained unbroken.

With 10 minutes and 47 seconds remaining, Eriksen punctured the roof of the net.

Still, though, the two sides were merely level on points. Spurs had to go to Barcelona. Inter would host an eliminated PSV side, knowing all it had to do was better Tottenham’s result.

So there was life. But tenuous, decrepit life.

The fourth death: Lucas, Part I

Matchday 6, however, was different. At Wembley, Spurs hadn’t so much cheated death as put it off until a later date. After 90 minutes at Camp Nou, they would either be dead or very much alive – upright, healthy, standing just as tall as 15 others.

But the former outcome was always the more likely, and especially after Ousmane Dembele put Barcelona ahead inside seven minutes. He’d abused poor Kyle Walker-Peters. Left the inexperienced 21-year-old prone on the grass, unable to bear his face to the world.

Hirving Lozano soon gave PSV a surprising lead in Italy. But few expected that to hold, and it didn’t. Icardi equalized in the second half. Tottenham still trailed in Spain. Inter was on track to go through.

Story continues