Spurs hopes of using new stadium
Club’s plea for later date ignored by organisers Race against time to get ground ready for Feb 13
Tottenham’s bid to play their Champions League last-16 tie against Borussia Dortmund in their new stadium has been hit by Uefa’s decision to schedule it in the fixtures in the second week of February.
While clubs cannot request specific dates, Spurs had made it known that they would have preferred to play their home tie in the second round of matches, on Feb 19-20.
But Uefa did not make any concessions and confirmed the home match against Dortmund would take place on Feb 13, with the venue to be decided. Spurs have been in discussions with Uefa since they drew with Barcelona to qualify, and Europe’s governing body last week revealed an announcement would be made before February.
Daniel Levy, the Spurs chairman, confirmed there would be a further stadium update in the week beginning Jan 7 and it is thought a decision Probably the weakest of the last-16 ties, given Roma are nothing like the team who reached last season’s semifinals. Porto topped their group, winning five times, but these are two teams who everyone else wanted to draw. on a venue for the Dortmund tie will be made around that time.
Despite hosting a fan-familiarisation event on Sunday, Tottenham face a race to make sure they are in a position to offer Uefa the guarantees they would need to commit to hosting the Dortmund game at their new stadium.
Spurs have already confirmed that the home game against Manchester United on Jan 13 will take place at Wembley, with even the most optimistic predictions highlighting the Newcastle game on Feb 2 as the earliest Tottenham could be in their new home. Gloomier forecasters suggest March is a more likely date, but it seems the announcement in the second week of January will prove decisive. This will be the third time in four years that Tottenham will have played against Bundesliga leaders Dortmund and Harry Kane believes that experience could be vital.
Spurs were knocked out of the Europa League by the German club in 2016, before completing a Champions League double over them in last season’s group stages.
Kane said: “Borussia Dortmund are a top side, great stadium, great support. It’s going to be tough. They are doing well this season in the Bundesliga and they look in top form. So, it’s tough, but we know we’re capable of beating them.
“We’ve had some good results in the Champions League, especially away from home when you look at the likes of Real Madrid (1-1), Dortmund (2-1) and Juventus (2-2) last season, and now Barcelona (1-1) this season. It’s good we’ve got that experience, we’ve been there and know how to get it done and now we need to use that again.
“This is what we work hard for, to get through the group and into the knockout stage. We had one point after three games, but dug deep to get through.”
Liverpool and Manchester City also face trips to Germany after drawing Bayern Munich and Schalke respectively. Bayern are having a difficult season and are nine points behind Dortmund in the table, but goalkeeper Manuel