Champions League: Can Spurs Park Domestic Woes

Atletico Madrid vs Tottenham Hotspur

When the text came through from my best friend, it was barely believable.

His Spurs side had just lost 2-1 at home to Newcastle and what he said next took me aback.

Sure, the North Londoners had struggled all season and Thomas Frank – who lost his job the following day – was under pressure.

But we were talking about the Europa League holders, a side which had reached the knockout stages of the Champions League and which, just over a week earlier, despite a crippling injury crisis, had fought back from 2-0 down to draw at home to Manchester City.

The message was along the lines of: ‘Spurs are going down, mark my words; two wins in 17 games’.

He then went onto relay his reasons why.

Fast forward three weeks and, when the follow-up message arrived on Thursday night following a 3-1 home defeat to Crystal Palace, a contest in which they self-destructed, he was even stronger in his belief: ‘it’s been obvious to me for a while; they are already down. There’s nothing there, not even an ember.’

So, are Spurs already a lost cause or do you have more faith?

Talking Points

Champions League: Igor Tudor’s team, Tottenham Hotspur, are winless in their last six matches across all competitions — Tottenham Hotspur coach Igor Tudor during their match vs Arsenal

I appear to be in a minority when I state that Frank should have been given longer in post, given the astute Dane had only been at the club since the summer.

But even if you think otherwise, why has he been replaced by a boss who, just three games into his interim tenure, already looks out of his depth as far as this SBOTOP observer is concerned.

You may think my view is extremely premature but I’m not convinced one iota.

With the pressures of a relegation dogfight evident with each passing minute, Spurs take a break this week when they travel to the Spanish capital for a last-16 tie in Europe’s premier club competition.

It’s hard to correlate with their 16th place in the Premier League table but, while they’re here, it begs the question: can they put their domestic woes behind them and go and thrive on the European stage?

Spurs certainly deserved credit for automatically reaching the last 16 of the tournament with a 2-0 win at Eintracht Frankfurt in January, securing some enjoyable Champions League 2026 highlights and ensuring they finished fourth in the league phase.

This tie is a quick reunion for a player Frank signed a matter of weeks ago, only to have little chance to work with him.

Indeed, since arriving in North London for £34.6 million from Atletico, Conor Gallagher has featured eight times for Spurs, playing in two draws and six defeats – but not once completing 90 minutes.

Frank said upon signing Gallagher that the England international “will bring leadership, maturity, character and personality to our dressing room, while his running power, pressing ability and eye for goal will strengthen us in a key area of the pitch”.

Yet that has not happened – at least not yet – and some fans have branded the ex-Chelsea man as ineffective.

Gallagher scored seven goals in his 77 appearances for the club from the Spanish capital, including one after 28 seconds of their round of 16 second leg against Real Madrid last season.

As he makes a quick return to his old stomping ground, now would be a good time to show the form he is capable of.

There may also be a reunion for home defender Clément Lenglet who made 35 appearances for Tottenham while on loan from Barcelona in 2022/23.

While Spurs had the weekend off, licking their wounds from the 3-1 Palace reverse, Atletico were edging a five-goal thriller against Real Sociedad in La Liga.

It was a contest which kept them in third place in the standings as Nicolás González came off the bench to score twice at the Metropolitano.

Diego Simeone’s side, a fairly new-look team this term, controlled the game for long periods but could not pull away, twice taking the lead through Alexander Sorloth and González, only for Carlos Soler and Mikel Oyarzabal to provide quick-fire replies. Those two sides will actually meet in next month’s Copa del Rey final and it’s definitely the cup competitions which are the priorities for Los Rojiblancos.

The Champions League may seem a pipedream for Spurs but, in one way, the pressure may be off in midweek as expectations are so low.

If they are going to succeed, they will have to do it the hard way

Atletico have not lost a home Champions League knockout match since March 1997, when they were defeated 3-2 by Ajax in the quarter-final second leg. Their record since is won 13, drawn seven.

The Spanish side have also kept 13 clean sheets in their last 18 knockout games in their own stadium.

History

They’ve only met once before – but what a big occasion it was.

Rotterdam was the venue for the 1963 European Cup Winners Cup Final and the Lillywhites, managed by the great Bill Nicholson, were 5-1 winners. Another great, Jimmy Greaves, scored twice, as did Terry Dyson, with John White also on the scoresheet in the romp.