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Tottenham defender Micky van de Ven says it is "the biggest nonsense" to suggest the club's players do not care about the team's current plight.

Spurs are a point above the Premier League relegation zone in 16th with eight matches of the season left to play after a difficult campaign.

It has led to questions over the whether Tottenham's squad are already thinking about their own futures beyond the current season.

But Van de Ven gave a passionate defence of their commitment to the Spurs cause on the eve of the second leg of Tottenham's Champions League last-16 tie at home to Atletico Madrid.

"It's the biggest nonsense," the Netherlands centre-back told a news conference.

"Trust me - those involved on the pitch, the staff and the players - they care so much about the situation we are in right now.

"We just want to turn things around and that's the main focus for everyone. If reports say guys don't care anymore it's just frustrating for our guys."

Spurs trail Atletico 5-2 from the first leg in Madrid following a club-record sixth straight loss before they came from behind to draw 1-1 with Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday.

Van de Ven said suggestions that Spurs players are not bothered by their predicament "brings so much more trouble" because supporters are "starting to believe" them.

"The other day when we read something about one guy that said to everyone that he's probably going to leave and doesn't care about the situation they're in," added the 24-year-old Dutchman.

"People are just making things up. The only thing I can say about it is it's not true."

Spurs will be without midfielder Joao Palhinha for the tie with Atletico as he continues to recover from concussion.

Captain Cristian Romero, who clashed heads with Palhinha in the first leg, will be available to play while left-back Destiny Udogie and midfielder Lucas Bergvall are fit enough for the bench after hamstring and ankle injuries respectively.

Tottenham defender Micky van de Ven has labelled talk that members of the squad are talking and thinking about their next club as "nonsense".

Various reports in recent weeks, including in the BBC Sport gossip column, have linked first-team players with summer exits, while our fan writer Ali Speechley wrote earlier in March that, "some of the squad has mentally checked out – unbothered by the badge us fans love so dearly, and instead dreaming about their next club".

"I've seen things going by, it's not something I look at a lot, to be honest," Van de Ven said in the news conference before Wednesday's Champions League second leg against Atletico Madrid.

"It's reporters just saying something. So we're just like, how do you even come up with this? Like players are switched off or don't care about the situation. What's happening right now?

"And the only thing I can say about it is it's not true. It will be strange if a player will be in a dressing room now and saying 'Oh, I'm going to leave either way or I don't focus about the situation'.

"It doesn't affect me. And I think it's just nonsense. It's the biggest nonsense. Everybody's just focused on what's going ahead and what's in front of us.

"The other day when we read that one guy told the rest of the team that he doesn't care because he's leaving anyway. It's like how does this come out? It's just made up. And the fans will believe it. It's just frustrating for us guys.

"It brings so much more trouble as well, because fans are starting to believe this, but trust me, all the people involved on the pitch, the staff, the players, everyone, they care so much about the situation we're in right now, and we just want to turn things around.

"If there are some reports saying the guys don't care anymore, it's frustrating for our guys."

Watch: Tudor & Slot news conferences

All times in GMT

We have cameras at both the Tottenham and Liverpool news conferences today, and will also keep you up to date with the top lines from Newcastle's in Barcelona.

Here's a running order for today's news conferences.

Please note, the times are subject to change and we will bring you up to speed on which player from Liverpool will be taking part when we get that confirmed:

Van de Ven to face the media

Tottenham v Atletico Madrid (Wed, 20:00 GMT)

George Cummins

BBC Radio 5 live

Welcome to Hotspur Way, where Micky van de Ven will be sitting alongside Igor Tudor taking questions from the media ahead of tomorrow's match with Atletico Madrid.

The centre-half has been criticised by Tottenham fans of late for his performances and the red card versus Crystal Palace in the Premier League.

As one of Tottenham's senior players, it will be interesting to hear his thoughts on the club's season and the lingering threat of relegation.

Some good news for Igor Tudor with Cristian Romero, Lucas Bergvall and Destiny Udogie returning to training this morning.

However, Sunday's goalscorer Richarlison will miss tomorrow's match through suspension.

Poll: Greatest Champions League comeback by an English side?

This may be against the rules as a football supporter, but I find it's hard not to get carried away even when watching one of your domestic rivals complete a dramatic comeback on a big European night.

There is a poll at the top of this page to stir up some of those memories.

Which is your favourite?

Ready for Tottenham's 'La Remontada' - part II?

Tottenham v Atletico Madrid (Wed, 20:00 GMT)

Tottenham Hotspur

Spurs were three goals down on aggregate with 45 minutes remaining of their 2019 Champions League semi-final at Ajax - yet a Lucas Moura hat-trick secured their place in the final on the away goals rule.

That same year, Liverpool suffered a 3-0 defeat in the first leg of their last-four encounter at Barcelona, but won 4-0 at Anfield to make it through.

And Barca themselves overturned a four-goal loss in the first leg of their 2017 last-16 tie against Paris St-Germain to win through 6-5 on aggregate.

That match has become known as La Remontada (The Comeback).

Atletico Madrid also have recent history in this regard - last month they beat Barca 4-0 at home in the first match of a two-legged Copa del Rey tie, but were given an almighty scare in the away leg before eventually making it through 4-3 on aggregate.

So there is hope.

Need more belief Spurs fans? Click here to soak in the comeback vibes.

Spurs will have to beat the odds - as well as Atletico

Tottenham v Atletico Madrid (Wed, 20:00 GMT)

Tottenham Hotspur

Whichever Tottenham players are fit enough to take to the field at home to Atletico on Wednesday night, they will face a Herculean task.

Opta's supercomputer has given Spurs a 4.1% chance of reaching the quarter-finals.

They have not won in their past eight matches in all competitions, and failed to win their last four matches at home.

Tottenham's last home win was against Borussia Dortmund on 20 January.

As mentioned, only four teams in Champions League history have overturned a three-goal first-leg deficit to make it through a knockout tie.

But stranger things have happened...

What are the Champions League concussion rules?

Just to reiterate, in the Premier League, any player who has suffered concussion must not return to first team action until they have completed a set process - hence why Spurs' Cristian Romero and Joao Palhinha missed the draw at Liverpool.

But in the Champions League, the onus is on the club to decide - so if Spurs judge Romero and Palhinha to be fit, they can play tomorrow night.

The presence of Romero in first-team training indicates he could be involved, while we wait and see on Palhinha.

Romero with full squad but Pahlinha trains alone

Tottenham v Atletico Madrid (Wed, 20:00 GMT)

Tottenham Hotspur

The Tottenham first team trained this morning, and there were a couple of positive signs for Spurs fans.

Cristian Romero was with the main training group after missing the weekend draw at Liverpool with concussion, raising hopes the captain could return tomorrow.

As mentioned, Romero clashed heads with team-mate Joao Palhinha against Atletico Madrid - and the on-loan Bayern Munich midfielder was reportedly training alone, so may not be available for the second leg.

Lucas Bergvall and Destiny Udogie, who have both been injury absences, were also in first-team training - but there was no Conor Gallagher, who has been ill.

Richarlison, who scored the late equaliser against Liverpool, was also reportedly training in the gym rather than with the rest of the first team.

What are the concussion protocols?

Tottenham v Atletico Madrid (Wed, 20:00 GMT)

Ask Me Anything

In the Premier League, if a player is judged to be concussed they must not return to activity for at least 24 hours.

They will then begin a six-stage 'return to play' process, which starts with an initial 48-hour period of rest.

The FA then recommends "a staged and graduated return to full daily activities".

There is no specific time period enforced, it is up to the clubs and their medical departments to judge when each player is fit and ready to play, based on their diagnosis.

Uefa has its own policies, based on a "Recognise, Report and Remove" principle, which again puts the final decision on a player's fitness firmly in the hands of the club's team doctor.

Read more on concussion protocols here.

From bad, to worse, to even worse - will Romero & Palhinha be available?

Tottenham v Atletico Madrid (Wed, 20:00 GMT)

Tottenham Hotspur

Just when Igor Tudor was thinking Tottenham's night at the Metropolitano could not get any worse, two of his key players - central defender Cristian Romero and midfielder Joao Palhinha - went for the same ball in stoppage time and suffered a sickening clash of heads.

It was later confirmed they would be unavailable for Spurs' next match - last Sunday's Premier League game at Liverpool - as the club was following concussion protocols.

Their absence added to Tottenham's lengthy injury list, with 13 first-team players missing the trip to Anfield.

The question is - have they recovered sufficiently to be available for selection for Wednesday's return leg?

Spurs reach new low at Atletico

Tottenham v Atletico Madrid (Wed, 20:00 GMT)

Tottenham Hotspur

There was already a question mark over Igor Tudor's appointment as interim manager when Tottenham travelled to Madrid last week for the first leg of their last-16 Champions League tie against Atletico.

Spurs arrived at the Metropolitano Stadium on the back of three consecutive defeats under Tudor, but things went from bad to worse as they conceded four goals in the opening 22 minutes against Diego Simeone's streetwise side.

Tudor made the shock decision to start with 22-year-old reserve goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky, but substituted him after just 17 minutes, reverting back to number one Guglielmo Vicario.

After conceding a fourth goal moments after Vicario's introduction, Tottenham did manage to stem the tide somewhat, with a goal in each half from Pedro Porro and Dominic Solanke, either side of a fifth for Atletico from former Manchester City forward Julian Alvarez.

So Atletico will take to the field in Tottenham on Wednesday with a three-goal cushion.

Only four teams in 51 attempts have managed to come back from three goals down after the first leg of a Champions League knockout tie - could Spurs be the fifth?

Epic comeback anyone?

Champions League

Ready for action?

A huge night of Champions League football awaits.

Manchester City and Chelsea must overcome three-goal deficits if they are to reach the quarter-finals later tonight, while Premier League leaders Arsenal must find a way past a stubborn Bayer Leverkusen side.

But that is for later, today we will be building up to tomorrow's ties, with news conferences to come from the Liverpool and Newcastle camps from 15:30 GMT.

Our first stop, however, is at Tottenham, where interim manager Igor Tudor is busy planning an epic comeback of his own...

It was a tough couple of days last week for the English clubs in the Champions League.

Six sides from the Premier League took part in last-16 first-leg ties, but none of them won.

Two of them - Newcastle and Arsenal - secured draws, against Barcelona and Bayer Leverkusen respectively, Liverpool lost 1-0 at Galatasaray, while the other three - Tottenham, Chelsea and Manchester City - all suffered defeats by three-goal margins.

On Tuesday and Wednesday the second legs take place with Spurs, Chelsea and City all needing something memorable against Atletico Madrid, Paris St-Germain and Real Madrid respectively.

Portuguese side Sporting also begin three goals behind when they entertain Bodo/Glimt after losing in Norway last week.

But there is hope for those sides that are trailing heavily.

Before this season's last 16, there have been 51 occasions of a team losing the first leg of a Champions League knockout tie by three or more goals. Four of those have progressed to the next round.

We have taken a look at those instances, as well as Tottenham's heroic 2019 comeback from 3-0 down with one half left.

Tottenham travelled to Ajax for the second leg of their semi-final trailing 1-0, and things went from bad to worse in Amsterdam when Matthijs de Ligt and Hakim Ziyech put Ajax 3-0 ahead on aggregate before the break.

Spurs needed to score three times without reply to progress on away goals, and were given a glimmer of hope 10 minutes into the second half through Lucas Moura - and it was game on just four minutes later.

Moura pounced on a loose ball in the box after Fernando Llorente's shot was saved and he curled home to put the hosts on the ropes.

The stunning turnaround was completed in the 95th minute when Moura recorded a hat-trick to seal Tottenham's spot in the final on away goals, leaving Ajax players strewn across the turf in disbelief.

Just 24 hours before Tottenham's heroics in Amsterdam, Liverpool had overturned their own three-goal deficit.

The Reds' hopes of forcing their way back into the semi-final after a 3-0 loss to Barcelona at the Nou Camp looked slim, especially with Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino unavailable because of injury.

But Divock Origi got the ball rolling on seven minutes, before the tie really turned in the space of 166 seconds after half-time when substitute Georginio Wijnaldum scored twice.

A moment of quick thinking saw Liverpool complete the job as Trent Alexander-Arnold spotted Barcelona's defence switch off from a corner, whipping the ball in low for Origi to fire home and spark wild scenes at Anfield.

"Roma have risen from their ruins."

That iconic line from commentator Peter Drury summed up an incredible night as Roma clinched a memorable comeback to send Barcelona packing in the quarter-finals.

Own goals from Daniele de Rossi and Kostas Manolas helped Barca record a 4-1 win in the first leg at the Nou Camp.

Edin Dzeko's late goal in Spain gave Roma something to build from and the forward struck early in the return leg to further strengthen their belief.

De Rossi atoned for his own goal with a second-half strike and, with just eight minutes to go, Manolas headed home a corner to end Roma's 34-year wait for a place in the semi-finals of Europe's leading competition.

Deportivo La Coruna, currently plying their trade in the second tier of Spanish football, are no longer associated with the Champions League - but they carried out an unforgettable fightback against heavyweight opposition in 2004.

Milan travelled to Spain with a 4-1 lead from the first leg, but Deportivo were not ready to roll over.

Walter Pandiani, who broke the deadlock at the San Siro, got the Spaniards up and running on home soil.

Unlike the first leg when they sat back after taking the lead, Deportivo threw caution to the wind and it paid off as they wiped out Milan's aggregate advantage in just 43 minutes after goals from Juan Carlos Valeron and Albert Luque.

That would have been enough for Deportivo to go through on away goals but they continued to press and Fran slotted home a fourth to confirm Carlo Ancelotti's side were heading out.

Tottenham have won just three of their 16 meetings with Spanish sides in all European competition (D5 L8). The first of those was against Atlético Madrid, beating them 5-1 in the 1963 UEFA Cup Winners Cup final.

Having lost just one of their first six UEFA Champions League away games against English sides (W2 D3), Atlético Madrid have now lost five of their last six visits to England (W1). However, all three of their away wins against Premier League teams in the competition have come in the knockout stages (3-1 v Chelsea in 2013-14, 3-2 v Liverpool in 2019-20 and 1-0 v Man Utd in 2021-22).

Before this season’s round of 16, there have been 51 occasions of a team losing the first leg of a UEFA Champions League knockout stage tie by 3+ goals. Only four of those have progressed to the next round, most recently Liverpool against Barcelona in the 2018-19 semi-final (0-3 away, 4-0 home).

Tottenham have won all four of their UEFA Champions League home games this season by an aggregate score of 10-0. Only three times has a side won their first five without conceding in a single campaign - Deportivo de La Coruña in 2003-04, and Real Madrid in both 2010-11 and 2015-16.

Atlético Madrid have scored 29 goals in their 11 UEFA Champions League games this season, their most in a single campaign in the competition. They went 3-0 up inside the opening 15 minutes against Spurs in the first leg, the earliest a team had ever netted 3+ goals in a Champions League knockout stage match.

Between 2008-09 and 2021-22, Atlético Madrid kept 47 clean sheets in 103 UEFA Champions League games, the best ratio of any side to play in more than one campaign (46%). Since the start of 2022-23, they’ve kept just five clean sheets in 37 games in the competition, the lowest ratio of any side to play 30+ games (14%).

Julián Alvarez has been involved in 10 UEFA Champions League goals this season (7 goals, 3 assists), the most ever by an Atlético Madrid player in a single campaign. The Argentinian scored twice and assisted another in the first leg against Spurs.

Despite only starting once, Dominic Solanke has scored in all three of his UEFA Champions League games for Tottenham Hotspur. The only player to score in his first four for a Premier League side is Gabriel Jesus at Arsenal, while the only Englishman to score in his first four for a club is Jude Bellingham at Real Madrid.

Antoine Griezmann scored (1) and assisted (1) for Atlético Madrid in their victory over Tottenham last week, while he was the second-oldest player to do so in a knockout stage game in the UEFA Champions League (34y 354d), after Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema in February 2023 versus Liverpool (35y 64d).

If Archie Gray remains in the starting XI for this game, he will have the most UEFA Champions League starts for Tottenham while aged under 21 (currently level on six with Dele Alli) – despite only just turning 20 last week.

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Igor Tudor delivered a message of defiance amid Tottenham Hotspur's deepening crisis when he told his players before their visit to Liverpool: "You can stay and cry or you can fight."

The smart money was on more tears after four straight losses under the Croat saw an alarming drop towards relegation, along with a loss at Atletico Madrid in the Champions League last 16 first leg that was nothing short of a fiasco.

And yet here, against all odds and without 13 players because of suspension and injuries, Spurs stood and fought every inch of the way at Anfield to earn a fully deserved point with a performance that may yet prove to be of wider significance as they fight against the drop into the Championship.

Will it be enough to buy Tudor more time? We shall see.

The sense is he is not out of the woods yet, but at least Tudor can have the satisfaction of demonstrating he can get a reaction, at least once, from Spurs players who had previously looked down and out.

Monday's newspaper back pages are about Richarlison's all-important 90th minute equaliser against Liverpool on Sunday that could prove vital in Tottenham's attempt to pull away from the relegation zone.

It's left the media and pundits wondering whether a point at Anfield could be the turning point that Igor Tudor and Spurs need.

"The whole season has been very poor by their standards and the pressure was mounting on the new manager after another heavy defeat midweek," says former Premier League footballer Charlie Adam.

"To go to Anfield and get a point will look to kick-start the season for them because they are in the mix [of the relegation scrap]. They need to start getting results so that will hopefully give them some confidence going into the final run-in.

"They were well-organised, well-drilled and more competitive than they have been.

"They now just need to keep going so that Tottenham are in the Premier League next season."

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