Home EPL Jan Vertonghen: Europa League is “perfect” for Tottenham

A 2-1 loss to Monaco in match day one set the tone for the remainder of the campaign, as Tottenham struggled to get going against a team they had thrashed 4-1 in the Europa League just nine months previously. It is a great chance to get experience at Wembley and make it our home.

Harry Kane celebrates his goal.

“We are starting to show our real quality”, Pochettino said. “Wembley is a special stadium and we need to look forward to feeling comfortable there”. Every team goes through a spell where their form drops a bit.

“Are we title challengers?” That was important for us.

Slutsky leaves with reigning champions CSKA third in the league table, ahead of the domestic season restarting in March with a home game against second-placed Zenit.

“It is really important to stay in European competition because we are out of the Champions League”.

Could it be that Akinfeev would keep his first Champions League clean sheet in over a decade underneath the Wembley arch?

Alli was guilty of two glaring misses against the Russians in the first-half before his super, curling finish levelled the scores after Alan Dzagoev had given the visitors a shock lead in their first attack.

Christian Eriksen and Alli were guilty of spurning the most presentable opportunities in the first half-hour, both shooting tamely at visiting goalkeeper Akinfeev from close range. “If I feel I can be good then I can step by step start thinking about future roles”.

The draw for the Europa League’s knockout stage will be held on Monday with Spurs being a seeded team due to having one of the best third-place records among the other clubs who are dropping into Europe’s secondary competition.

Indeed, the Red Devils have only won two of their last 10 Premier League games to leave them a staggering 13 points behind leaders Chelsea after 14 matches of the new season.

Tottenham finished their miserable Champions League campaign on a high this evening and will continue into the Europa League after Christmas following their 3-1 victory over CSKA Moskow. We were much better. We don’t want to find any excuses outside.

“Can we win it?” Eriksen did find the net twice in an EFL Cup demolition of Gillingham, but it was unusual to see such a consistent performer lose his way in the games that mattered.

But he then went 10 games without a goal before his spectacular scissor-kick in Saturday’s thrashing of Swansea and the South Korea global feels back to best after a minor injury and globe-trotting with his country.