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Spurs record in Europe:-
European Cup
P W D L F - A
8 4 1 3 21 - 13
(Semi-Finalists 1962)
European Cup Winners Cup
P W D L F - A
33 20 5 8 65 - 34
(Winners 1963)
UEFA Cup
P W D L F - A
85 51 20 15 182-71
(Winners 1972, 1984
Finalists 1974)
Total
P W D L F - A
127 75 26 26 268-118
Aiming for the Blue Riband Event!
It's here at last! Spurs earnt the chance to qualify for the Blue Riband European Competition for the first time in 49 years. As we celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the famous Double Season, we realise that it is 49 years since we played our one and only European Cup campaign. There were many famous nights then, and we must hope that our beloved team can take advantage of a great draw to progress to the Champions League proper. That quest starts tonight in Bern, Switzerland.
Our opponents are Young Boys of Bern, whose full club name is in fact "Berner Sport Club Young Boys". The club name and that of their Stade de Suisse, Wankdorf has attracted a lot of gags, but Spurs' task tonight and next week at The Lane is of a very serious nature. Harry Redknapp might have tried to play down the importance of the tie, but progress to the financially lucrative and prestigious Champions League proper has great importance indeed! At least a potential £20 million is at stake in prize money, TV fees and advertsing revenue, not to forget the ticket prices. The return leg at Tottenham is a Category A for those who do not hold season tickets, so many will have to dig very deep this season!
The Young Boys season proper began on 17th July in the Swiss Super League of only 10 teams. So far they have played five games and only won 1 of those, on the 8th August against Grasshoppers. They reached this phase of the Champions League by beating Fenerbahce in the third qualifying round, but lie only 7th in their leagaue at this stage.
Young Boys are perennial visitors to the early phases of one or other of the European competitions, qualifying his year for finishing runners-up in their 36 game season. Their manager is Croatian Vladimir Petkovic, who is in his third season in charge, having managed Swiss teams since the turn of the century. Petkovic will therefore know all about the skills and strengths of Corluka, Modric and Kranjcar, all of whom might play tonight. Kranjcar missed out on the squad of 18 on Saturday and will presumably start in a team that will also feature Sebastien Bassong, as Ledley King has not travelled.
Spurs last game in European competition was in February 2009, when the starting line-up was much weakened from the regular team. Our opponents and ultimate winners of that year's UEFA Cup were Shakhtar Donetsk, and our scorer in a 1-1 draw was Giovani, who is one of only five starters in that game who are likely to feature in tonight's game. The others were Gomes, Huddlestone, Palacios and Bale.
The Young Boys' squad is predominantly Swiss, including Enfield born defender Scott Sutter, who is a Spurs fan, and now also holds Swiss Nationality.
Despite their impressive result against the Turkish team, the form of our opponents does not seem to be too good, whereas Spurs started very well on Saturday against Manchester City. I fancy us to bring back a two goal lead tonight, but whatever happens, it's going to be a hell of a night at White Hart Lane next Wednesday!
· Will it be plastic fantastic for Spurs?
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