Spurs ready to ask fans over Carabao Cup venue

Tottenham Hotspur will consider the results of a fan survey before deciding where to play their thirdround tie of the Carabao Cup if drawn at home.

Having already announced the opening of their new stadium has been delayed, Spurs this week confirmed that they would not be able to use Wembley for the third round of the Carabao Cup, which is to take place in the week starting Sept 24.

The English Football League can give permission for Tottenham to reverse the tie or play at a neutral venue if they are drawn at home and a request is made, and the club are now keen to find out the views of their fans.

Having spoken to the Spurs board, the Tottenham Hotspur Supporters Trust have put together an online survey and will pass the results back to the club.

Fans are being asked whether their preference would be to play at a neutral venue or flip the tie, whether they have attended a League Cup match in the past three years, how likely it is that they would attend a game at a neutral venue, what factors would influence their decision and which geographical limitations they would put on choosing a neutral ground.

Although Mauricio Pochettino, the manager, will have the biggest say on where a third-round game would take place, it is unlikely Tottenham would seriously explore trying to secure a neutral venue if their fans made it clear they would not attend.

Spurs are insistent that a decision would not be financial. They would have to pay to hire a neutral venue and have to fund the operational fees if the tie was reversed.

Spurs are yet to confirm when their Premier League game against Manchester City at the end of October will be played, with Wembley unavailable on Oct 28. The most likely scenario is the game will be put back 24 hours, with Tottenham all but ruling out the prospect of the fixture being reversed.