Why Tottenham must qualify for the group stages of Europa League

Why Tottenham must qualify for the Europa League group stages.

Tottenham Hotspur have some early season fixture congestion, but if they are not successful in Europa League qualifying, the season may go south before it starts.

Tottenham did their job on Thursday in Bulgaria, winning the second round of UEFA Europa League qualifying, and in doing so, Spurs were advanced to the playoff draw only hours after having their fourth-round draw in the Carabao Cup, which Spurs start this coming Tuesday.

Following the victory and two draws, Tottenham now face at minimum six and maximum eight games over the next 16 days. Regardless of the load, Spurs must win to get in the Europa League competition the squad desperately needs.

Tottenham need to win to get in

Despite achieving Jose Mourinho’s 100th victory in European competition in Bulgaria, Tottenham Hotspur technically have still not fully qualified for the 2020-21 UEFA Europa League. To qualify, Spurs still have to win two more matches.

First, a must-win against KF Shkendija in Macedonia to even face that third playoff match. We now know that third playoff match would be at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – saving some miles on the club just a few days prior to facing Manchester United – and we know Spurs will face the winner of Maccabi Haifa from Israel versus Rostov from Russia.

Although most fans likely know little to nothing about these three teams, the same was true of Lokomotiv Plovdiv, who came within about 20 minutes and a few dumb moments away from pulling off the miracle. In other words, this is football, and anything can happen so we cannot assume victory in these two matches, particularly given the playoff would be either the sixth or seventh match the club will have played in just 14 days.

Likewise with the Carabao Cup, Tottenham must beat Leyton Orient on Tuesday to advance and play the winner of Barnsley at Chelsea one week later. Assuming Spurs find a way past League Two Leyton Orient to likely face Chelsea, that will be on the back of playing Thursday, Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday, and then again Sunday just two days prior.

What we know for certain is that Spurs will play those five games in 11 days regardless, it is the week that follows as September turns into October that is less clear, but even more important. If Tottenham fails to advance, particularly in the Europa League, it could be big problems in the club.

From bedlam to bored if Spurs fail to qualify

The real issue here for Spurs is to qualify for the Europa League. While the Carabao Cup would be nice, the reality is after that fourth round with Chelsea, at most Spurs would get three more games from the Carabao Cup, with the fifth round not until December and the final not until February.

In other words, after these frantic two weeks of matches, the Carabao Cup becomes a blip on the schedule, potential silverware or not. Therefore, Europa League qualification is critically important for Spurs as it means more games.

If Tottenham Hotspur play the maximum eight games over 16 days, then lose in the playoff of the Europa League, the team would go from those eight games in just over a fortnight to just seven games over the space of two months, regardless of the Carabao Cup results. That is right, this team we have all been so worried about being overtaxed and stretched too thin would suddenly have literally nothing to do.

The Carabao Cup fifth round is in December – which is another fixture congestion to talk about later. Spurs enter the FA Cup in the third round, which is not until January. Just as four games per week is too many, one game per week for a squad the size of Spurs is just not enough.

In other words, if Spurs do not qualify for the group stage of the Europa League, the team will not only be short from a financial perspective, Jose Mourinho would be short from a matches perspective to continue bedding in new signings and furthering his vision of the squad.

With more talent coming in and the difficulties Spurs seem to be having moving some folks out the door, not having enough minutes can really destroy a locker room. With the Europa League, suddenly the opportunities to play in October go from four matches to six and from only three matches to five in November. Eleven matches to bed his squad and prepare them for the rigors of December and beyond sure sounds a lot better for Mourinho than does seven.

We are all excited for the players coming in the door, however, it would be a massive let down for everyone involved and potentially a calamity if Tottenham Hotspur fail to qualify for the group stage of the Europa League and the matches that come with it.