Pedro Porro has opened up on the situation Tottenham Hotspur currently find themselves in ahead of their Champions League clash against Atletico Madrid.
When Spurs sealed a top-eight finish in the league phase of the Champions League, the expectation was that there would be major excitement at N17 when they resumed their campaign.
However, their big clash against Atletico arrives at a time when Tottenham are staring at the prospect of being relegated from the Premier League for the first time in nearly 50 years.
Igor Tudor is a man under immense pressure after losing all of his first three games as interim Spurs head coach.
Tottenham ‘just cannot’ compete with top sides in their current situation
Pedro Porro has admitted that the injury crisis at the club last season and this one has severely handicapped the Lilywhites.
He insisted that with many of the club’s best players out, it is nearly impossible to go toe-to-toe against the best sides in the Premier League.
Speaking to Radio Marca, Porro declared: “It’s difficult, because when you’re competing in four competitions under these circumstances… we already had that bad experience last year in the Premier League with so many injured players, and you just can’t compete.
“We have young players coming on strong, and looking at this season, it’s basically the same. You’re going to play against Arsenal, City, Liverpool, or Chelsea, and you just can’t.
“We could field a starting eleven of injured players that might even be stronger than the eleven that’s currently playing. And it’s not out of disrespect to anyone, but that’s basically the reality.
Porro reveals what he has challenged his Spurs teammates to do
The Tottenham right-back revealed that he had challenged his teammates to approach the game with positivity despite their current predicament.
He insisted that Spurs are going to see the Champions League as an opportunity rather than a distraction despite their perilous situation in the Premier League.
The 26-year-old added: “We have to think and maintain a positive mindset. I’ve told my teammates that it’s difficult to compete like this, but we always have to give 100%, even though things aren’t going well in the Premier League, just like last year. We’re going to approach the tie with the same ambition we’ve shown so far in the Champions League.”