Thu 03 December 2020, 11:27
Tottenham HotspurJose Mourinho made it clear he’s expecting the toughest game of the Europa League group stage when we face LASK in Linz, Austria, this evening (5.55pm UK).
Here’s our regular pre-match preview with Jose, who sat down with us after training on Wednesday.
1 - Team news
Jose has a few issues ahead of this one...
Jose: "We have some problems, we have some injuries. Lamela is out, Harry Kane is out, Vinicius, Reguilon, Alderweireld, but the team is good, the players are good. We have a good squad, good solutions and we have to win. We have to go there with the mentality that we have to win.”
2 - Harry and Toby
Jose was asked further about Harry Kane and Toby Alderweireld’s fitness in relation to being ready for Sunday’s north London derby...
Jose: “I’m not going to tell you the nature of Harry's injury, but I think he has a good chance. I don’t want to lie, I don’t want to hide anything in relation to if he’s going to play or not... I think he’s going to play, that’s my feeling. Toby has a chance, not for tomorrow, he’s not even an option, he’s not ready, but in his process of recovery, he’s doing very well and there is a chance that he plays (on Sunday)."
3 - LASK
Jose described LASK as our most difficult opponents in the group in his press conference, so would this therefore be our toughest game?
Jose: “I believe so. I believe that our defeat in Antwerp was more in relation to our attitude, the way we faced the game than the potential of the team. I feel that LASK is a difficult opponent. They have a good dynamic. I like the way they play and I think they are a difficult team. If we repeat the same kind of light approach that we had in Belgium we are going to be in trouble.”
4 - Group J
What are Jose’s thoughts in terms of qualifying? Did he want to go all-out to win the group, or is qualification enough? We need a draw in Austria to secure that progress to the knockout phase...
Jose: “I want to win the matches, that’s just the way it is. If by winning the matches, we finish top of the group then great, but at this moment I’m not thinking about qualifying or not qualifying, I’m thinking about the next match and trying to win the match. We go to win. Let’s see.”
5 - NLD looming
Jose was asked in his press conference if he would have Sunday’s derby against Arsenal at the back of his mind when it came to team selection against LASK...
Jose: “No, the big game is tomorrow. When we make changes in relation to the Europa League matches, we make these changes based on sometimes problems that we have, and when we do that, we trust the people who play. We had Chelsea last week, and before Chelsea we played Ludogorets, and we were not thinking about Chelsea. We made the changes that we thought we had to make, to give some players the chance they deserve. At this moment, Arsenal is not on our mind.”
