How serious should Tottenham take the Conference League this week

With the Tottenham Hotspur squad currently thin from injuries and absences, it is fair to ask how seriously the Spurs will take the Conference League trip to Rennes, France this week.

Even at full strength, many fans do not believe Tottenham should put much effort into the Europa Conference League. As the third-tier European competition,  everything is smaller but the trophy and cash for winning are real. With a busy month, a thin squad, and Chelsea coming to town, we have to ask, should Tottenham go down a gear and play all the kids in Rennes?

Reasons Tottenham should just play the kids at Rennes

After more than 30 minutes with just 10 men on Saturday, coming off an international break, after a short summer filled with football, it is quite likely several players on Tottenham Hotspur need a rest. When you look at players like Heung-Min Son picking up injuries, it is likely from overplaying as much as anything else.

The Spurs have Chelsea coming to town on Saturday and everyone needs to be at full strength for that game, so it makes sense to sit most of the regular starters – as Tottenham did on the first trip to Pacos de Ferriera. At least five players are still very much a question mark for Sunday against the Blues, plus knowing Japhet Tanganga will be out.

With the idea of being ready for Chelsea in mind, it just does not make sense to field the strongest possible side as many of the same players will be needed on the weekend. The idea that Harry Kane, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, and Sergio Reguilon are going to run around for 90 minutes in a match that many consider meaningless seems ridiculous.

If Tottenham want to extend the bench youth must be served

It seemed the idea with Nuno Espirito Santo was that he would integrate youth and help develop the young talent at the club. While that was the case in the preseason and there are a lot of younger players in both the Premier League and Conference League squads, thus far, the overall opportunities have been limited.

The gamble with the younger squad against Pacos put the team under some pressure for the home leg. However, one of the big reasons players like Jack Clarke and Dilan Markanday are not out on loan is that they can have opportunities to get some minutes with the senior club. Well, if that is ever to be true, this week, with the team banged up, the younger players need to play.

Do I really want Tottenham to play a bunch of academy players and let the game turn out as it may? No, I would rather see Tottenham play to win and do so. However, there are some compelling reasons for Nuno to do so. Whether he does or not will tell us a lot about our new coach and his ambitions for this team.