Tottenham Hotspur already had an astoundingly busy fixture list to deal with at the start of the season but the Europa League third-round qualifying draw has only compounded their problems.
The North Londoners learned today that they will either come up against Romanian club FC Botosani or Macedonian club FK Shkendija in the third round of Europa League qualifying, which will be held on September 24, if they come through the second round.
Spurs previously found out during Monday’s draw that they would have to travel to Bulgaria to take on Lokomotiv Plovdiv on September 17 in the second round.
The gruelling trips to eastern Europe will be especially challenging since the Lilywhites will have just 48 hours between matches, with the Europa League games sandwiched between Carabao Cup and Premier League matches.
According to Football.London, this is the schedule that Mourinho’s men could face at the start of the campaign (depending on their success in the EL qualifiers and the Carabao Cup).
Sep 13 (H) – Everton
Sep 17 (A) – Plovdiv
Sep 20 (A) – Southampton
Sep 22 or Sep 23 – Carabao Cup Third Round
Sep 24 (A) – FK Shkendija or FC Botosani
Sep 26 (H) – Newcastle
Sep 29 – Carabao Cup fourth round
Oct 01 – Europa League qualifier
Oct 03 (A) – Manchester United
Spurs Web Opinion
9 games in 21 days is an unprecedented level of fixture congestion. Given the travelling involved for our Europa League matches, to potentially have just 48 hours between games will mean that Mourinho will have no choice but to rotate his squad. This also shows why we must bring in a backup striker before the start of the season, as Kane will have to be rested for at least three of those matches.
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