Tottenham have one huge advantage over AZ Alkmaar ahead of Europa League clash
Tottenham Hotspur are set to resume their Europa League campaign with a big round-of-16 clash against AZ Alkmaar this week, and the North London club have one big advantage over their opposition heading into the tie.
Tottenham’s form has improved over recent weeks since the return of key first-team players and the mood around the club is undeniably much more upbeat than it was two weeks ago.
The focus now shifts to the Europa League for Ange Postecoglou’s men, who know that they still have an opportunity to turn this campaign into a memorable one if they can lift the trophy in Bilbao in May.
They will first have to overcome Alkmaar to book a place in the final eight of the competition, and the Premier League side go into the game in much better shape.
Tottenham should be fresher than AZ Alkmaar
Spurs had to deal with an extremely crowded fixture schedule earlier in the season, with the problem being further compounded by their injury crisis.
However, the schedule has now significantly eased up, and they will have had a full week of rest ahead of their trip to the Netherlands for the first leg on Thursday.
On the other hand, Alkmaar have had two games in a matter of just three days. The Dutch side took on Heracles in the semifinals of the KNVB Cup, with the tie going to extra time and penalties, with AZ emerging as the winners in a shootout.
Then on Sunday, they had a tough Eredivisie away game against Heerenveen, which they lost 3-1.
That means that they have played 210 minutes of football (not counting injury time) since Tottenham last faced Manchester City, with the Premier League side thus going into the tie a lot fresher.
Spurs have no excuses in the Europa League this season
Apart from the fact that they go into the tie fresher, Tottenham also have the advantage of having the second leg at home. Even if they have a deficit in the first leg, they would be confident of turning that around at home against the Dutch side next week.
Spurs thus have no excuses not to overcome Alkmaar and their big names have to turn up for this game, given the time they have had to rest and recover.
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