Former Tottenham striker Dimitar Berbatov believes the Lilywhites have to be taken seriously as a contender for the Champions League title now that they have Jose Mourinho in charge.
Spurs will resume their Champions League campaign on Wednesday when they welcome RB Leipzig to the Tottenham Hotspur stadium for the first leg of the round of 16 clash.
Berbatov believes Tottenham will be making a huge mistake if they underestimate Leipzig and implored the side to be mindful of the pace the Bundesliga side have on the counter attack.
The German side possesses a serious attacking threat in the likes of Timo Werner and Marcel Sabitzer (BBC).
Speaking to Betfair, the Bulgarian said: “Spurs are through to the last 16 in the Champions League and maybe we will now see them get the best of Mourinho. Leipzig are a team that cannot be underestimated.
“When they played Bayern Munich they had a number of great chances to score but were unlucky in the end.
“So Spurs must be careful, especially with the speed of Leipzig who, in Timo Werner, have a player who can run at the speed of light. They cannot afford to underestimate them.”
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The 39-year-old also suggested that despite being one step away from being crowned champions of Europe last year, the club has a better chance of winning the trophy this season given Mourinho’s record of winning it with underdog sides.
The Portuguese coach has won the trophy with Porto as well as at Inter Milan and Berbatov won’t count him out from winning a third title with Spurs.
The striker added: “Spurs aren’t the favourites to win the Champions League, they weren’t the favourites to reach the final last year, but now they have that Mourinho-factor.
“When he won it with Porto, they weren’t the favourites but they lifted the trophy. He gives Spurs that extra bit in this competition, if he wins it with them he will go down into the Tottenham folklore.
“He is already one of the greats, nobody can take anything from him, if he wins the Champions League with Spurs he will have done it three times with different teams, and it is always good to do win a trophy with the underdogs, it’s the best feeling.”
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Mourinho has certainly proved that he’s capable of winning the competition in the past but it is worth remembering that the 57-year-old hasn’t reached a Champions League final for almost 10 years. So he will want to prove that he is still good enough to win the competition again with us.
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