It’s that time of year once again. The event that supporters from Europe’s top clubs all anxiously wait to unfold and where seasons can be won or lost. It is, of course, the Champions League group stage draw.
Held in Monaco this year, plenty of European teams around the continent will be praying for the footballing gods to be kind to them this year and hand them a group that will make it easy to progress into the knockout stage of the most prestigious club tournament in the game, and one of these sides will be Tottenham.
Of course, it seems odd to think that Spurs, the side that made it to the final last year, should be banking on lady luck to hand them an easy draw. After all, Tottenham have impressed greatly in the group stages in recent years, going through last year over the likes of Inter Milan and PSV and the season before that topping a group featuring Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund.
But this year is different. For starters, Spurs will be heading into the Champions League with less depth than they had in the previous two seasons, with the likes of Fernando Llorente and Kieran Trippier all leaving this summer, as well as Christian Eriksen’s future yet to be decided as the European transfer window heads into its final days.
This lack of depth, as well as competing in the Premier League and League Cup in the first half of the season, could see Spurs’ side getting fatigued quicker than most due to the lack of options, and clubs with more fleshed out rosters could easily take advantage of.
Spurs’ run to the final last season also makes them a club that others in the competition will be eager to beat, and with Mauricio Pochettino’s side already tasting defeat this season to the hands of Newcastle, it could be a sign that other teams have found a weakness in Tottenham’s game plan to exploit.
If Spurs are to repeat the magic the captured last season, luck will likely need to be on their side this year as Pochettino aims to mount another surprising run to the Champions League final.