Tottenham Hotspur will put their dismal Premier League campaign to one side when they welcome Elfsborg to North London for their final League Phase fixture in the Europa League on Thursday night.
Spurs are gearing up for their first meeting with Swedish opposition since losing 2-1 to Osters IK in the 1995 Intertoto Cup.
Match preview
© Imago
Since putting Manchester City to the sword 4-0 at the end of November last year, Tottenham have alarmingly lost eight of their last 11 Premier League matches (W1 D2), with a disappointing 2-1 home defeat to relegation-threatened Leicester City last weekend representing their fourth top-flight loss in a row.
Despite going into half time in front, Spurs conceded twice in the opening five minutes of the second half and lacked a cutting edge in the final third to restore party. The damning defeat has since raised question marks over the future of manager Ange Postecoglou, who has come under increased pressure to turn the club's fortunes around amidst a well-documented injury crisis.
Spurs remarkably collected more points in their opening 10 games of last season (26) than they picked up in their first 23 fixtures of the current campaign (23) and they are currently languishing in 15th place, closer to the relegation zone than the top seven. The Lilywhites are in a healthier position in the Europa League standings, though.
Indeed, Postecoglou's men ended a three-match winless run in the League Phase by beating Hoffenheim 3-2 in Germany last week and they now sit sixth in the 36-team table, knowing that a win over Elfsborg on Thursday will guarantee automatic qualification for the last 16. However, a draw or defeat could put them in danger of slipping into the playoffs.
Tottenham have only won two of their last 10 matches in North London across all competitions (D3 L5), but their impressive 16-game unbeaten home record in European competition (W13 D3) bodes well ahead of their contest with Elfsborg.
![Elfsborg manager Oscar Hiljemark during the Allsvenskan football match between Elfsborg and IFK Göteborg on August 25, 2024 [on August 27, 2024]](https://sm.imgix.net/24/35/oscar-hiljemark.jpg?w=640&h=480&auto=compress,format&fit=clip "Elfsborg manager Oscar Hiljemark during the Allsvenskan football match between Elfsborg and IFK Göteborg on August 25, 2024 [on August 27, 2024]")
© Imago
Elfsborg remain in contention to qualify for the knockout rounds of the Europa League for the first time in their history after accumulating 10 points from their seven League Phase fixtures, including back-to-back 1-0 home wins over Qarabag and Nice.
Gustav Henriksson scored the decisive goal midway through the second half to help the Yellow Ones edge past Ligue 1 side Nice and climb up to 20th in the 36-team Europa League standings, two points clear of 25th-placed Porto in the elimination zone.
Securing at least a point away against a struggling Spurs outfit would all but secure Elfsborg's place in the last-16 playoffs, but that could prove challenging for the Swedish side as they have lost seven of their last eight European away matches, conceding 24 goals in the process.
Managed by 32-year-old Oscar Hiljemark, Elfsborg finished their domestic campaign at the end of November last year - settling for seventh place in the Allsvenskan table after being pipped to the title on goal difference in the previous season - and they have since focused solely on the Europa League while taking part in a few friendly fixtures to maintain their fitness levels.
The Yellow Ones were last in action against Nice last week and they are now preparing for their first-ever game against English opposition, as well as their first meeting with a British opponent since playing out a goalless stalemate with Scottish giants Celtic in the 2013-14 Champions League qualifiers.
Team News
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Tottenham's lengthy injury list includes Guglielmo Vicario (ankle), Dominic Solanke (knee), Brennan Johnson (calf), Destiny Udogie, Timo Werner and Wilson Odobert (all hamstring) who all remain unavailable for selection.
Richarlison was forced off with a groin problem in the defeat to Leicester and will be assessed ahead of kickoff along with Pape Matar Sarr (fitness) James Maddison (unspecified), Djed Spence (knock), Cristian Romero (thigh) and Micky van de Ven (hamstring), the latter two have taken part in first-team training this week.
January signing Antonin Kinsky is ineligible for Thursday's clash, so Brandon Austin is set to deputise between the sticks, while Yves Bissouma and Micky Moore could be recalled to start in midfield and attack respectively.
As for Elfsborg, they currently have a clean bill of health and Hiljemark is expected to name a similar side to the one that began their victory over Nice last week.
Following the departure of Michael Baidoo to Plymouth Argyle earlier this month, Jalal Abdullai was handed a start as the central striker last time out and the 20-year-old is set to lead the line once again, with Arber Zeneli and Gottfrid Rapp providing support in attack.
Isak Pettersson, Terry Yegbe, Niklas Hult and Ahmed Qasem are among those who have played in all seven of Elfsborg's Europa League matches up to this point, and they are all in contention to be selected in Hiljemark's first XI once again.
Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:
Austin; Porro, Dragusin, Davies, Gray; Bergvall, Bissouma, Bentancur; Kulusevski, Son, Moore
Elfsborg possible starting lineup:
Petterson; Buhari, Holmen, Yegbe; Hedlund, B. Zeneli, Ouma, Hult; A. Zeneli, Abdullai, Rapp
We say: Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 Elfsborg
It is difficult to back a struggling, injury-hit Spurs side at present, but they will be regarded as favourites to get the better of a relatively youthful Elfsborg team on Thursday.
If the hosts are boosted by a couple of players returning from injury, then they will fancy their chances of edging past their Swedish counterparts who have lost each of their last three European away matches.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Oliver Thomas
