Europa League final: Spurs’ chance for silverware following dismal season

National World - LocalTV

Tottenham head into their Europa League final with hopes of silverware - but also a growing injury list that threatens to overshadow preparations for the biggest night of their season and recent history. We spoke to James Trembath of LondonWorld to get the latest from inside the camp.

Transcript

00:00Tottenham Hotspur head into their Europa League final with hopes of silverware, but also a

00:08growing injury list that threatens to overshadow preparations for the biggest night of their

00:13season and recent history.

00:16What began as a promising campaign under Ange Postacoglu has been repeatedly disrupted

00:22by fitness setbacks and those issues haven't eased ahead of the final. A number of key

00:27absentees have left the squad stretch, forcing Spurs to dig deep in recent weeks to reach

00:33this stage. Despite the adversity, there's still a sense of opportunity. Lifting the trophy

00:38would not only mark a major achievement under Postacoglu, but also offer a fitting reward

00:44for a squad that has shown to resilience and adaptability in the face of mounting challenges.

00:51We spoke to James Trembath of London World to get the latest from inside the camp. The

00:55mood remains focused and determined, but there's no denying that Spurs will need to overcome

01:01more than just their opponents if they're to finish the season with a trophy.

01:06So James, a massive game for Spurs in terms of their recent history, in terms of saving

01:13their season. Obviously, we mentioned going into it, the run to get to the Europa League

01:18final. They do face Manchester United, who do have a fairly decent record in finals and

01:24getting over the line in big games throughout their history. So it is a challenge. And then

01:28obviously, mounted more of that challenge is the injury situation as well, which we'll get

01:33into. But just in terms of this game alone, obviously, it's been a dismal season for Spurs,

01:39but it's certainly an occasion that, you know, you may as well let your hair down and get excited

01:43for as a Spurs fan.

01:44Yeah, I mean, I wouldn't quite go as far as to say redemption for Spurs, but certainly,

01:49you know, we joked at the start of the season that, you know, would you take finishing 17th

01:53and winning the trophy? And here we are, we're 17th, likely to finish 17th, I think as well.

01:58And we've got the possibility of making history and winning a European trophy. So it's exciting,

02:04it's probably terrifying in equal measure. Two Premier League strugglers, you know, 16th

02:09v. 17th, and we've wrapped up 39 Premier League defeats between us. So it's kind of the ultimate

02:14pillow fight, I guess, isn't it? I think one pundit described it as the other day. Winner

02:18takes all. I mean, I think if you look at the sort of both, the stance from both clubs,

02:23Spurs are desperate for the trophy. And obviously, Champions League is the kind of icing on the cake.

02:28I think if you were to ask my United fans, who obviously have had the luxury of winning

02:32several titles and trophies in the past couple of decades, they probably just won the Champions

02:37League, I think, in terms of their direction of travel. So you could argue there's probably

02:42more on it for Spurs in terms of that trophy, you know, ending that 17-year wait for a trophy

02:48since we last won a cup in 2008 when we lifted the League Cup. It feels such a long time since

02:53Ledley King lifted that one. I was just a teenager when that happened.

02:57So, yeah, it's going to be a heck of a game. Two Premier League strugglers, but obviously

03:03the European form has been much, much better. I think the thing with Spurs is we've been

03:08very, very cavalier, you know, wide open in the Premier League. We've spoken about it

03:11time and again, haven't we, in terms of that ball over the top, that aggressive high line.

03:15Very, very exposed, conceding lots of silly goals in the Premier League. But certainly

03:20in Europe, we've been much more robust, a lot more pragmatic. You know, you don't see

03:23Porro and Udogi bombing over the halfway line and inverting as much as they do in the Premier League.

03:28We play with that sort of double pivot with Bissouma and Benton Kerr. So we're a lot more

03:32solid, we're a lot more robust. You could argue we're not quite as dangerous going forward,

03:37perhaps. And Man Utd have been the same, aren't they? They've had some tremendous European

03:41results and, you know, really made light work at Bilbao in what looked like a really, really tough

03:47semi-final on paper. So it's going to be tight. I just hope that Spurs obviously come out on the

03:53right side. Playing Sarb, Benton Kerr, Bissouma really does leave us void of any creativity.

03:58So, you know, does he try something different? Do we go with a Son in the 10 maybe and we bring

04:04Teller Odeber on to the left side? Or does he go Son in the 10 and bring Richarlison in? You know,

04:08Richarlison, big game player. He's obviously won trophies for Brazil and he's maybe got that

04:14little bit of bite and that little bit of aggression that you maybe need in a final.

04:18So really, really interesting to see which way Ange goes in terms of that team selection

04:23and indeed formation. I mean, you know, you could even argue that Solanke could withdraw as the 10

04:27and Richarlison up top on his own, but can't really see that happening because obviously

04:33Solanke leads the press so well. So I think he'll go Solanke up front and then

04:38you know, we wait to see what he does with that final midfield slot, but I think the rest

04:43of the team probably picks itself.

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