Europa League updates as Spurs take on Asteras TripoliClick here for the rest of the nights live scoresSend any thoughts to ian.mccourt@theguardian.comOr get in touch over on the Twitter @ianmccourt 7.38pm BST So when you read that March 24 was the day that both Ivan Kruzliak and Chris Bosh were born on, the same day that Hickland and Hasselhoff became one and the same day that The Breakfast Club is set, you thought that day could not get any better, right? How wrong you were. Let Simon McMahon explain why. Things that happen on March 24? Its National Tree Planting Day in Uganda, you know, he cheers. 7.25pm BST Tonight, you shall be watching this mötley crüe do their respective things. Tottenham, it would seem, are taking the game pretty seriously by returning Adebayor and Townsend to their starting lineup. Joining them is Vertonghen, about whom speculation regarding his future just wont go away, and Kane who, along with Lloris, has been one of Spurs better players in this competition this season. Chadli who had been suffering with an unspecified injury makes the bench but Danny Rose and Kyle Naughton are not so lucky. As for Asteras, the curse of the preamble has struck for Barrales and he too will be watching from the comfort of the bench. Those teams in full then are as follows: Tottenham: Lloris; Dier, Vertonghen, Fazio, Davies; Dembélé, Capoue; Lamela, Kane Townsend; Adebayor. Subs: Vorm, Chiriches, Lennon, Chadli, Eriksen, Stambouli, Soldado. 7.05pm BST The common consensus is that most players/fans would prefer to declare themselves a god, realise that meant sex was only for mortals, study monks and vasectomies and then perform one on themselves before jumping off a two-story balcony, rather than be associated with the Europa League. And somedays its hard to argue against that. In an already pretty crowded schedule, there are far too many games to reach the top, there are far too many teams trying to reach the top and the idea that a Champions League team can be rewarded for their failure in that competition by just swanning in and taking a place in the round of 32 makes the whole thing stink of farce and taste like that cheap and nasty, yellow pack rot-gut they used to sell in Quinnsworth.And yet, glory is glory is glory is glory is glory is glory. Should Tottenham progress past the group stages, navigate the round of 32, do one over another in the round of 16, get a decent draw in the quarters, go hard in the semis and reach the final, youd have to be one hella stubborn Spurs supporter/player not to get excited about the thought of winning a European trophy, especially given the Champions-League tasting carrot that is attached to it. Given their form and placing in the league right now ( Mauricio Pochettino wasnt wrong when he called it a tough period) could that route be Tottenhams best chance of traipsing across the biggest stage next seasons? Hmmm, yeah, maybe, but if so, they have already made life hard for themselves.Their first game in the group C saw them enter an intimidating atmosphere in Belgrade and leave with a point, after some resolute rear-guard action and plenty of profligacy up front. Their second game saw them take on Besiktas, saw them played off the park and once more saw them end with a point, after Demba Ba converted a penalty one minute from time thanks to bone-headed defending from Vlad Chiriches. All of which has left Spurs in third place, two points behind the group leaders and tonights opposition, Asteras Tripoli.You probably know (the Greece version of) Tripoli as the birth place of former Greek prime minister, Konstantinos Georgakopoulos, and for the fact that it is twinned with Peine, Germany, but, of late, Asteras Tripoli have been the reason for the southern citys fame. It has been quite the rise for the Arcadians. Eleven years ago, they were playing in the fourth flight of the Greek league but it took them just another four to secure the back-to-back titles and take their spot in the Super League. Their first few season up top were shaky and there was a bit of slap and tickle with relegation but the the last three have been steadier and seen them record top six finishes, as well finish as runners-up in the Greek Cup.To get where they are today, they have beaten Mainz, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Partizan and drawn away to Besiktas, so any one who thinks Spurs are going to have it easy tonight best take their thinking back to the drawing board. While there, they might want to think about the fact that the Greeks are unbeaten in five games. In his pre-match presser, Staikos Vergetis, indicated that his side would rock up at White Hart Lane with defence in mind (and that is what they worked on in the a cold north London last night) but this is a side that is laced with some silky and strong Argentinians, not least their main goal threat, Jerónimo Barrales (who know that he has been mentioned here will surely be dropped to the bench). They wont stay back forever though their back four will be hampered by the loss of Dorin Goian to an ankle injury and they will look to hit and hurt Tottenham on the counter (only Mainz have stopped them from scoring in Europe this season).This is going to be a tough one for Tottenham. News of the 11 men that Pochettino thinks can do this is on its its way, as is 90 minutes of football. Woop! Continue reading...
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