Tottenham’s Greatest Test

Champions League | Preview

17/10/17

Tottenham Hotspur have made great strides under the guidance of Mauricio Pochettino and having finished second in the last two Premier League campaigns, looks set to be the only club capable of staying with the Manchester clubs this season.

However, progress in the Champions League has not been as good and while Tottenham Hotspur have established themselves as a top club in England, they are not feared on the continent.

Real Madrid on the other hand, are a team renowned for their performances in Europe’s premier club competition and will be looking for their third straight Champions League winning season. A win in this match for the hosts, will see them move 3 points clear at the top of Group H, ahead of the visit to Wembley.

Trends show Real Madrid have won their last four games in all competitions, with three wins coming in La Liga and one in the Champions League.

Perhaps Real Madrid’s best performance so far this season has come in the Champions League as they defeated Borussia Dortmund 3-1 away from home.

Zinedine Zidane’s team have lost only one of their last ten competitive games in all competitions this season and that was a shock 1-0 home defeat at the hands of Real Betis in La Liga.

Other than that match, Real Madrid have had no problem scoring goals in games but defending has been a bit more of an issue. The Spanish champions have kept just three clean sheets in their ten games and have conceded in five of their last six matches.

Tottenham Hotspur travel to Madrid on the back of a hard fought 1-0 win over Bournemouth in the Premier League. It appears the team are finally getting used to playing at Wembley and have started to see it as home.

Trends show Tottenham Hotspur have lost only one of their eleven competitive games this season and the single defeat came back in August against defending Premier League champions, Chelsea.

Since then, Tottenham Hotspur have been on a run of nine games without defeat, with seven wins and two draws. They have won each of their last five matches.

In the Champions League, Tottenham Hotspur have won both their group games. A convincing second half performance saw off the challenge of APOEL in Cyprus but the pick of the results was the exciting 3-1 win over Borussia Dortmund at Wembley.

Looking ahead to the team news and Real Madrid will be without Gareth Bale, Daniel Carvajal and Mateo Kovacic. There are also doubts over goalkeeper Keylor Navas.

Tottenham Hotspur travel to the Spanish capital with doubts over Moussa Dembele, Victor Wanyama and Erik Lamela.

This is a huge match in this group and although Real Madrid have not been at their best this season, you cannot look beyond a home victory. Their record at the Santiago Bernabeu in the Champions League is tremendous and they are unbeaten in their last fifteen.

Tottenham Hotspur have struggled on the road in the Champions League and although they will test Real Madrid defensively, keeping out the hosts at the other end of the pitch will be a problem.

Expect to see Real Madrid come out on top, with both teams scoring.