Guglielmo Vicario has addressed the growing challenges Tottenham face ahead of their decisive Europa League second leg against Bodo/Glimt, from an artificial surface to the absence of both the club captain and vice-captain.
Tottenham Hotspur have been handed several injury blows ahead of their second-leg Europa League tie against Bodo/Glimt in Norway.
Lucas Bergvall was seen on crutches in the first leg, and it has since been confirmed that Bergvall would miss the remainder of the 2024/25 season.
James Maddison, Tottenham’s vice-captain, is also set to be out for three months after picking up a knee injury in the first leg, missing the second leg of the semi-final and the final, should Spurs go all the way.
Captain Heung-min Son did not travel and remains sidelined with a foot injury, with Ange Postecoglou stating he could be in contention for the weekend.
Guglielmo Vicario opens up on Tottenham’s injuries ahead of Bodo/Glimt clash
While Tottenham Hotspur are dealing with their injury crisis, Bodo/Glimt have had a good seven days of rest ahead of the clash against Spurs on Thursday night.
The Lilywhites are aware that the second leg would be played on an artificial surface, a ground Bodo/Glimt’s manager has stated would play a role in the return leg.
Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario has now spoken on Spurs’ injury crisis and what he expects from his teammates.
The Tottenham number one has stated that the entire Tottenham squad would be crucial if the Lilywhites are to get a result against Glimt, given their current injury crisis that would see both the club captain and vice-captain miss out.
He told Football.London: “It’s the kind of thing that we’ve always to deal with, to be fair. We will not have Sonny and Madders for tomorrow. So yeah, it’s on us, but it’s on everyone.
“The importance of the entire squad tomorrow will be crucial and we will need the contribution from everyone who’s going to start and who’s going to come in and from the guys on the bench. I think the Spurs family will play a crucial role in the game tomorrow.”
Vicario shares concerns over the Bodo/Glimt pitch
The Italian shotstopper also spoke about his experience playing on astroturf. The Tottenham number one admits that he has little experience on such a surface, but insists that he and his teammates would need to adapt.
He said: “I don’t know, we’re going to try tonight, to be fair, so not impressed (bothered) about that. We knew before coming here that the surface would have been different to normal pitches, so nothing changed for us. We just adapt quickly tonight, and we will be ready for tomorrow.”
When asked whether he is unimpressed by the artificial pitch, Vicario added: “Well, to be fair, it’s not my decision. If they can play on this surface, on an artificial pitch in a semi-final, it’s fine. So we’re going to adapt.
“Many teams have played here, so it’s not an excuse to come here to say ‘oh, the pitch is artificial’ because many teams during this season and over the last years have played here, so nothing has to worry us about the surface.”
On his own experience with artificial pitches, Vicario said: “I don’t have a lot of experience to be fair. I’ve played, I think the last time five years ago on an artificial pitch but I cannot change this, so it’s just how quickly you adapt.
“As fast as you adapt, the easier it will be tomorrow. So it’s just the kind of mindset too. We knew before coming here that the surface would be artificial so we cannot change the condition of the pitch just for tomorrow night.”
Indeed, the Bodo/Glimt players would be looking to take advantage of any weaknesses in Tottenham’s game on Thursday.
In fact, the Glimt players have already mentioned that they are looking to pounce on Spurs’ poor pressing. The Lilywhites cannot afford to start slow, and adapting to the artificial surface would need to be done quickly on Thursday night.