Tottenham Hotspur showed signs of life on Sunday afternoon when they were able to battle back and secure a last-gasp draw at Anfield against champions Liverpool.
Richarlison’s 90th-minute strike meant that Spurs ended a run of six straight losses in all competitions and secured interim coach Igor Tudor’s first point.
That meant Spurs were able to move one point clear of the relegation zone and while battling for their Premier League future will be the club’s priority in the coming weeks, Tudor’s side will bid to reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League on Wednesday night - although they have somewhat of a mountain to climb.
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Goalkeeper set to miss Spurs vs Atletico second leg
Tottenham will host Atletico Madrid on Wednesday night in their last-16 second leg, following what was a shambolic performance from Spurs in Spain last week.
Tudor’s side found themselves 4-0 down after just 22 minutes at the Metropolitano Stadium, a passage of which saw goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky hauled off by the Croatian boss after just 17 minutes following errors which led to Atletico’s first and third goals.
The match would finish 5-2 to Diego Simeone’s side and ahead of this week’s return leg, it would appear that the narrative may again be dominated by the goalkeeping position.
That’s because Atleti stopper Jan Oblak - ranked at No.8 in FourFourTwo’s list of the planet’s best goalkeepers at the end of last year - will miss the trip to north London.
The Slovenian has been a key part of Simeone’s team for more than a decade and has not missed a single game in the Champions League this season, but according to Spanish outlet Marca, he will not travel to London for the midweek clash.
They report that the 33-year-old is ‘still suffering’ from a muscle strain which saw him miss his side’s 1-0 win over Getafe on Saturday, with the club initially hoping that enabling him to continue his recovery at the weekend would give him a shot at turning out against Spurs.
That has not transpired and Oblak will now focus on getting fit in time for Sunday’s Madrid derby against Real, with Juan Musso set to deputise at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Musso, who is a two-time Argentina international, kept a clean sheet in the La Liga win over Getafe and joined Atleti from Atalanta, initially on loan in 2024 before making his move permanent last summer.
Tudor, meanwhile, unsurprisingly recalled Guglielmo Vicario to his side for the trip to Liverpool, as he looked to deal with a lengthy list of injuries.
January signing Conor Gallagher missed out at Anfield through illness and will be a doubt to face his former side, while Destiny Udogie, Yves Bissouma, Lucas Bergvall, Mohammed Kudus, Dejan Kulusevski, Rodrigo Bentacur, Wilson Odobert, Ben Davies and James Maddison remain sidelined, although Cristian Romero and Joao Palhinha could both be in contention after missing out against Liverpool with concussion.