Tottenham travels to Portugal to take on Sporting Lisbon in match week two of the Champions League. Spurs will hope to continue their brilliant start to the season with a second straight win in continental competition.
This is the first time these two clubs will face each other in their storied histories. For Sporting, however, history is not on their side. They have a wretched record against English sides in European competition.
In the Champions League, they have never been victorious, and incredibly, have never scored a home goal against an EPL side.
Spurs faced Portuguese opponents in their UECL qualifying campaign at the beginning of last season. They defeated Paços de Ferreira 3-1 on aggregate under the tutelage of Nuno Espirito Santo. Doesn’t that seem like a long time ago?
Tottenham at Sporting Lisbon Champions League Group Stage FYIs
Kick Off: Tuesday, Sep 13, 2022 at 8pm UK at Estádio José Alvalade
Competition: Group D, Match Day 2 of 6
Watch Info: Click on the banners in this post. Streaming is available via Paramount+
Google Result Probability: Tottenham 48% Sporting Lisbon 26% Draw 26%
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Team News
Spurs have had a blessed run with injuries to start this season. Heck, even Oliver Skipp is fit. They will have just one first team player unavailable for selection. That player is Brazilian Lucas Moura. The forward has been suffering from a tendon injury and is not expected to make the trip to Portugal. Here are the latest comments from Spurs gaffer Antonio Conte on Lucas Moura ;
‘We only have one player who we need to recover, Lucas. I know tomorrow he is starting training again on the pitch, and that’s good news.’
Stueys Two Cents
I am high on Spurs this season, and I think there will be an emotional atmosphere in the capital after the Queen’s passing. My thought is Tottenham will make their deceased monarch proud against a side who have never beaten English competition in the UCL. Look for Conte’s men to be there or thereabouts at the business end of this competition.
Stuart Kavanagh is a journalist currently residing in Broken Hill, Australia. He writes for the Barrier Truth newspaper, along with being the owner of the sports and entertainment website thepyrrhic.com, He also co-hosts the ‘After Extra Time’ podcast and contributes at edgeofthecrowd.com when time permits.
Football mad, he is always down for debate and discussion at @stueyissickofit on Twitter.