Tottenham Hotspur have been told to get their house in order after UEFA slapped the club with a fine following their Champions League defeat at Atletico Madrid.
The UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body ruled on Thursday that Spurs must pay €10,000 (£8,656) after a delayed kick-off in the Spanish capital. Then-manager Igor Tudor, who was in charge for the tie, was also issued with a warning over the incident.
It did not end there. Spurs were further warned for what UEFA described as the team’s “improper conduct” after five of Tudor’s players were booked at the Metropolitano.
For a club already reeling from a miserable evening, the sanctions only added to the sense of disarray. Tottenham were beaten 5-2 on the night, capping a trip to Madrid that could scarcely have gone much worse.
Speaking exclusively to Tottenham Hotspur News, former FIFA referee and ex-PGMOL chief Keith Hackett criticised the club over the episode.
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Keith Hackett criticises Tottenham for late kick-off in Madrid
Throughout the campaign, matters have gone from bad to worse for Tottenham.
Not long after their Champions League exit at the hands of Atletico, Tudor lost his job and was replaced by Roberto De Zerbi during the international break.
Speaking about the situation in the Spanish capital, Hackett admitted that, while it was not catastrophic, it should serve as a wake-up call for the club.
“The fine is low when you consider the turnover of football clubs and the prize money the competition participants are competing for,” the former PGMOL chief told Tottenham News.
“It’s a warning for the club to get its house in order and understand the importance of clubs kicking off on time.”
While the incident itself may not rank among the biggest issues at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, it certainly adds to a growing list of errors in North London over the course of the campaign.
Tottenham have been in chaos mode throughout the season
This season, anything that could have gone wrong has gone wrong for Spurs, who now find themselves staring nervously at a relegation battle.
Last summer, the Lilywhites chose to appoint Thomas Frank immediately after the club’s first trophy lift in nearly two decades.
An underwhelming transfer window and a poor first half of the season later, Frank was gone and the aforementioned Tudor was in office – his seven-match spell in charge telling its own story about how well that decision worked out.
De Zerbi has since arrived to inherit an injury-hit squad, while Tottenham once again failed to address glaring problems during the January transfer window.
It is a pattern that stretches back years, with haphazard decision-making not confined to what happens on the pitch.
And while a minor incident and fine in Madrid hardly ranks among the club’s gravest problems, it is no coincidence that such episodes keep following a Tottenham side that has spent virtually the entire campaign in a state of chaos.
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