Tottenham @ Sevilla - UEFA cup - 5-4

[pookthfc]

i,m in prague right now, with only moments of internet time left, so i,ll be brief. but the thread must go up, so ...

uefa cup quarters, spurs in sevilla in the first leg. tough draw, but i,ve faith in the lads. 1-1, and we,ll take it back to the lane to finish it off. i,ll be watcing this from the molly darcy pub - one of my favorites anywhere - in vienna. can,t wait.

COME ON YOU SPURS!!!!

[sendorange]

I'd be a lot more confident with Ledley in there... although on the bright side it seems he should be fit for the home game.

So similar team to the one against Reading. One definite change will be Stalteri for Rocha and Chimbo in the middle. Then it's just a case of whether Teemu is fit and if Jol wants to put him in there ahead of Steed.

[DaeHaMinGuk]

Chimbonda in the middle is asking for 3+ goals for Sevilla I'm afraid.

[yaniv]

we must win 2-0

[cdmphy]

Seville is playing poorly at the moment. With so much speculation surrounding their coach, sporting director and any decent player they have, we may have caught them at a very opportune time.

And if King is ready for Saturday, he's ready for Thursday. Smoke-screen and I expect him to start to give the team a lift.

[adamalfi]

I have to tell you that the important part of this tie will be having Ghaly in the middle, Sevilla are a good physical team, and Ghaly is the most physical player we have...he needs to play both ties!!

[Colm]

With no Ledley our chances are slim for this game, Kanoute will be a handfull for our defenders.

If we could get Ledley back for the 2nd leg (if we're still in the tie) then that'd be great.

[DigitalTron]

I have to tell you that the important part of this tie will be having Ghaly in the middle, Sevilla are a good physical team, and Ghaly is the most physical player we have...he needs to play both ties!!

Hmm, I'm not sure Ghaly is our most physical player, I'd have to say that Mido is, probably followed by Jenas and then Tanio ... but against Sevilla I'm not too sure we need our most physical players in attack. I'm hoping for a first choice team, which means Lennon and Malbranque on the wings and Jenas and Zokora in the middle. But, with all the fixture congestion I'm sure Ghaly will see some playing time somewhere. He reallly earned a lot of respect from me when he played despite loosing a mouthful of teeth!

Another thing I like about Ghaly is that he keeps his temper (and his teammates tempers) under control. Now if he could only stop turning the ball over so much he'd be a very good player. Definitely some good qualities in him though. Taraabt may end up his biggest competition for playing time, but I kinda think we'll keep Taraabt under wraps until he signs on full-time with us ... Taraabt's still on loan if I recall correctly.

-Digital

[yaniv]

why in fifia i dont have middo?

[DaeHaMinGuk]

why in fifia i dont have middo?

Because FIFA sucks.

[jeffers77]

looks like we might have to use Ghaly regardless. Huddlestone is out. tanio will be back though, but this is not a good time to lose a solid player.

http://home.skysports.com/list.aspx?hlid=458704&CPID=8&clid=6&lid=3&title=Spurs+suffer+Huddlestone+blow

[sendorange]

Teemu being back is a bonus, the team is more solid with him in there.

[Spur_Forever]

It certainly sucks losing Hudd, but it's no huge loss. When fit, Jol always plays Jenas (whether in the middle or on the right), and Malbranque certainly doesn't deserve to be dropped. Zokora has played fewer games than most other starters this season, so he's still relatively fresh and as a DM, he's been in excellent form lately - so Huddy will not be missed that much.

Jol might play Ghaly on the right if he's looking to give Lennon a rest, but I doubt it. I think we'll see the same team that started against Reading, minus Rocha but plus Stalteri. If we score early, or are looking like securing a draw, we'll see Tainio come on for Malbranque and Lennon might then go off for Ghaly. And whatever happens, Defoe will come on for Robbie at around the 65th minute.

Frankly, I don't think we should give a rat's ass about the Chelsea game on Saturday. UEFA is our only shot at silverware and needs to be our priority (which I think it will be). We can still qualify for Europe if we lose to the Russians. In fact, even if we lose and all our closest competitors win, we'll only drop to 7th, which should still be a European spot. Jol knows this and will be out for blood on Thursday, imo.

My prediction is that we'll surprise everyone (other than Spurs supporters) and come back with a win from Seville. 1-2, with Kanoute putting them in front, but Berba pulling one back and Defoe sealing the win late on.

[Colm]

looks like we might have to use Ghaly regardless. Huddlestone is out. tanio will be back though, but this is not a good time to lose a solid player.

http://home.skysports.com/list.aspx?hlid=458704&CPID=8&clid=6&lid=3&title=Spurs+suffer+Huddlestone+blowDamn, shame about Huddlestone, he wont even be there for the 2nd leg. :(

[Danners9]

I have to tell you that the important part of this tie will be having Ghaly in the middle, Sevilla are a good physical team, and Ghaly is the most physical player we have...he needs to play both ties!!

Wrong, sorry.

Sevilla are a physical side but they are also a theatrical side. Ghaly making tackles and getting involved like he usually does will equal a yellow card from Alain Hamer (the ref) and then another one. They will target the players they know have short fuses, this includes Ghaly.

However, he may have to play given the injuries. So hopefully he doesn't lose his mind for a bit and keeps a lid on any frustrations.

Sevilla will dive and throw themselves to the floor. Just wait and see..

[DigitalTron]

TV Note:

This game will be broadcast LIVE on Fox Soccer Channel (FSC) at 2:30 am EST Thursday.

-Digital

[Solo Sevilla]

Wrong, sorry.

Sevilla are a physical side but they are also a theatrical side. Ghaly making tackles and getting involved like he usually does will equal a yellow card from Alain Hamer (the ref) and then another one. They will target the players they know have short fuses, this includes Ghaly.

However, he may have to play given the injuries. So hopefully he doesn't lose his mind for a bit and keeps a lid on any frustrations.

Sevilla will dive and throw themselves to the floor. Just wait and see..

Sevilla players dive alot, says who?

I love how you're already categorizing Sevilla players..

[Danners9]

Says me. I see the games, and they do.

Alves particularly.

Besides I said WILL dive, so come back tomorrow and tell me otherwise.

[sendorange]

Diving is something that worries me, we did get done by it against Braga and they only started diving a lot in the latter part of the games when we were in control. With Chimbonda as makeshift CB that will be a big problem for us if its from the start, giving away a soft pen or too many dangerous freekicks.

There was a rumour today Chimbonda was injured and may miss the game, but he was in the training photos so hopefully ok.

Let's hope Berbs doesn't get booked, one more and he misses a game.

[The Double]

I'm officially giddy for this game. I can't wait until tomorrow.