Dan Kilpatrick has suggested that finishing fifth might actually be a blessing in disguise for Spurs, suggesting that it would be much easier to win the Europa League next season, given the new format of the competition.
The latest results in Europe have pretty much guaranteed that the two extra Champions League spots will go to Italy and Germany rather than the Premier League next season.
That is bad news for Spurs and Aston Villa, who now know that they will have to finish fourth to get into Europe’s premier club competition next season.
Unai Emery’s side currently sit three points ahead of the Lilywhites and although Ange Postecoglou’s men have a game in hand, they also face a tricky end to the season, having to play all three of the title contenders over the coming weeks.
Tottenham could have a Europa League run
There is thus a very real possibility that Tottenham will miss out on Champions League qualification but Kilpatrick has now suggested that the North London club would start as the favourites to win the Europa League next season.
He explained that with the Champions League set to expand, teams from the competition will no longer drop into the Europa League, thus making it quite a bit easier to win Europe’s second-tier competition.
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Kilpatrick wrote in The Standard: “Unlike in previous seasons, there will be no drop down of clubs from the Champions League after the initial phase (now a 36-team league, rather than eight four-club groups). Once eliminated from a competition, clubs are out of Europe. This is a huge development.
“In the past 11 years, the only Europa League Final not to feature at least one club which had dropped down from the Champions League was Chelsea’s win over Arsenal in 2019, demonstrating the enormous impact the rule has had.
“The upshot is a Europa League in which Spurs or Villa should start the competition among the favourites and not have to worry about European heavyweights dropping into the knockouts.
“For ambitious managers like Ange Postecoglou and Unai Emery, who has already won the Europa League three times with Sevilla, getting into next season’s Champions League would boost spending power. But if they are motivated by realistic opportunities to win silverware, being in the new-look Europa League will have its advantages.”
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Another thing to keep in mind is that the extended Champions League format will mean that there will be even more games than usual next season for the teams who qualify for the tournament.
Avoiding the competition might thus give Spurs a better chance of competing for the top spots in the Premier League.
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