Surrey Comet

Elsewhere, beleaguered Spurs boss Igor Tudor hopes his side’s Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid will bring respite – but not a shift in focus – from their Premier League plight.

West Ham completed the FA Cup quarter-final line-up with a penalty shootout win over Brentford, while Paul Scholes apologised to former Manchester United team-mate Michael Carrick over a high-profile social media remark.

Scottish PFA chief insists safety must be priority

PFA Scotland chief executive Wishart has called for stronger sanctions on clubs if player safety is put at risk.

Wishart condemned the “unacceptable” scenes that followed Celtic’s cup win over Rangers at Ibrox on Sunday when home fans charged towards travelling supporters who had invaded the pitch to celebrate.

Nine people were arrested in the 24 hours after the quarter-final, one in connection with an alleged assault on a Celtic member of staff and player, while footage has also shown a Rangers fan aiming a kick in the direction of Celtic defender Julian Araujo.

The players’ union boss said in a statement: “Player safety is not optional. It is not negotiable. A footballer’s workplace is the pitch.

“What unfolded is yet another stark reminder of the escalating risks faced by professional footballers in Scotland simply for doing their jobs.”

Tudor stresses Premier League remains priority

Tudor has acknowledged Tottenham’s main priority is Premier League survival but urged them to use the Champions League to switch momentum.

Spurs are back at Atletico Madrid’s Riyadh Air Metropolitano for the first time since they lost to Liverpool in the 2019 Champions League final and the north London club are mired in a relegation fight after an 11-match winless league run this year.

Already with an eight-player injury list, any further absentees could damage Tottenham’s hopes of staying up and Tudor agreed when asked if Tuesday’s last-16 first leg was a free hit and a chance to try some new ideas.

Tudor said: “I agree with both things. Focus on us, playing a team who has a story in this Champions League, what they have experienced, they have quality.

“We need to do our best in terms that we need to grow, as you said also because our first aim is the Premier League, this needs to be said publicly.”

Dango Ouattara miss sends Hammers through

Brentford forward Dango Ouattara fluffed a Panenka-style penalty as West Ham reached the FA Cup quarter-finals for the first time in a decade with a 5-3 shootout win.

The Burkina Faso international’s outlandish attempt was easily caught by Hammers goalkeeper Alphonse Areola before Konstantinos Mavropanos converted the decisive spot-kick.

Hammers captain Jarrod Bowen and Brentford top scorer Igor Thiago each scored twice during normal time as an entertaining fifth-round tie ended in a 2-2 draw.

West Ham will face Leeds in the quarter-finals, while League One giant-killers Port Vale earned a lucrative trip to Chelsea. Manchester City take on Liverpool and Arsenal travel to Championship Southampton.

Scholes insists he did not mean to offend Carrick

Scholes has insisted he did not mean to offend his former team-mate Carrick after a social media barb aimed at the Manchester United head coach on Wednesday night.

Scholes posted that “Michael has definitely got something special about him, (because) United have been crap last four games,” shortly after United lost 2-1 at Newcastle.

Despite the loss, the first since Carrick replaced Ruben Amorim, United sit third in the Premier League and are challenging for Champions League qualification.

And responding to criticism of his comment, Scholes, speaking on The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast, said: “Michael is one of the nicest people you will ever meet in football – he’d be the last person I would want to offend.

“I think people have just took it differently from what was meant. The only thing I was saying was that I don’t think they played that well the last four games, and he’s still managing to get results.”

What’s on today

Another big night of Champions League action sees Liverpool and Tottenham travel to Galatasaray and Atletico Madrid respectively, while Newcastle prepare for a glamour tie against Barcelona at St James’s Park.

As the Championship promotion races continues to heat up, third-placed Millwall host Derby, while play-off rivals Wrexham and Hull also square off in north Wales.

Spurs boss Postecoglou masterminded the best victory of his tenure on Saturday with a remarkable 4-0 win away to Premier League champions Manchester City.

The Etihad Stadium thrashing occurred a fortnight on from a shock home loss to Ipswich, which sparked murmurs of discontent amongst a fanbase desperate for silverware and eager for consistency after up-and-down results this term.

Lloris spent 12 seasons at Tottenham before his departure last year and captained the club in three unsuccessful finals, but feels the current crop can go one better and win a first trophy since 2008.

“I spent six months in the changing room, I was not even involved but I could enjoy the football vision of Ange and I still believe and I am still convinced you have to stick with this way and trust the process,” Lloris told the PA news agency.

“The team and club is in a good position, they have talented players, different ages, different experiences but I still believe they can achieve something and win something.

“Part of the football world today, you have to deal with this expectation and I just hope and you don’t want to see the team affected by these things or the club affected.

“They have to be strong and stay together and make (as) one in the club. And also I would say the fans need to trust the process because what we see, we enjoy.

“That is the football we want to see them playing and it’s not because of one bad result or two bad results that we need to question everything. You have to look about medium to long-term because I believe they can do it.”

Across 447 appearances for Tottenham, Lloris always preferred to look forward rather than back.

However, the World Cup winner has spent much of the last year being forced to reminisce for his new autobiography titled ‘Earning My Spurs’ and published on November 7.

While Lloris never planned a book, journalist Vincent Duluc twisted the goalkeeper’s arm in 2023 and 10 sessions later the result is a detailed look at his whole life.

From his early years at Nice and Lyon to his record-breaking spell with France, the Quercus-published ‘Earning My Spurs’ covers a wide range of topics and extracts recently made headlines in England.

Lloris’ autobiography revealed how a luxury watch to the whole Spurs squad from chairman Daniel Levy with the engraving of ‘finalist’ before the Champions League final stunned him.

But the 37-year-old has not experienced any pushback for any of the content in a searingly-honest memoir.

“No, but there was a lot of noise about the Champions League episode,” Lloris said.

“To be honest, there is nothing bad about that, especially because I have so much respect for the club and also for Daniel Levy but at that time it was a bit weird.

“The only thing I meant is the club never used to be in that position and probably we didn’t do things in the right way. It’s as simple as that.”

Nevertheless, Lloris’ fondness for Tottenham shows in a book which not only offers praise for his successor in goal Guglielmo Vicario but detailed gratitude to Levy for “the sort of goodbye I’d dreamed of”, in reference to his farewell presentation on December 31 against Bournemouth.

When Lloris signed for Spurs in 2012, the club had not yet built its 62,850-seater stadium and only qualified once for Europe’s elite competition during the previous 50 years.

Lloris, who joined MLS side Los Angeles FC after leaving the Premier League, reflected: “I gave 12 years of my career to the club and I am proud of it, you know?

“And today I just support the club, I love the club and I just want to wish them and see them succeeding.

“I hope it will come but I am also proud because I was part of the group of players that make the club evolution. When I signed for the club and when I left, it’s a totally different club.

“Step by step we become even more competitive and put the club in a better position. I think today the club has everything and is strong enough to succeed.”

Sure thing - the buzz of the crowd, the throngs of people entering the stadium.

The thrill of the match, the joy of victory or the despair of defeat. Yes no problem!!

But for many grounds, match days are the only time you can spend a large chunk of your day at the stadium.

The magnificent Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is different.

We were going on a Friday to this modern icon of sporting arenas, which has been Spurs’ home since 2019.

It’s easily reachable on public transport, with our choice being the London Overground from Liverpool Street to White Hart Lane.

Our day’s schedule began with a unique experience - The Dare Skywalk.

This gives visitors the opportunity to walk up to the roof of the stadium for some spectacular views of the pitch and London skyline.

Myself and my wife were both a bit nervous about this aspect of the day but it turned out we had no reason to be.

You’re kitted up in safety harnesses and attached to a rail during the ascent to the golden cockerel on the roof.

We felt completely safe in our harnesses and you’re led in a group by an expert guide, who helps you into your safety gear and gives you some interesting facts at the top.

The views from the roof are special and although walking onto the semi circular platform by the cockerel is nerve wracking, it’s well worth it.

Admittedly we went on a very calm day weatherwise - it may be more anxiety-inducing when windy - but we absolutely loved it.

Thrill seekers can even add an abseil experience from the roof for an extra fee, though we didn’t do this.

Next, we went down to the F1 Drive experience.

F1 has partnered with the club to deliver this state-of-the-art karting attraction underneath the stadium.

We made a quick pit stop to grab food there before taking to the track.

The menu includes pizzas, burgers and pretzels but unfortunately the burgers were unavailable on the day.

Despite a fan’s favourite pizza promising pepperoni, beef and honey sauce, we were each provided with a standard pepperoni.

The pizza was nice enough, but in our eyes not worth the price. The eating area does offer some nice views of the track though.

Now to the racing itself.

Again no stone is left unturned beforehand. You are provided with a race suit, balaclava and helmet as well as a safety briefing voiced by Sky F1 commentator David Croft.

Although not regulars, we both love our karting and the track was a lot of fun to drive.

Each kart has a screen on it which is very cool - you can track your lap time and spot on the leaderboard.

A unique feature is the ability to give yourself a speed boost - via a drag reduction system (DRS) button and an energy recovery system (ERS) button.

This puts your motor racing brain into gear about where best to apply the boosts.

We had two 15-minute sessions and loved every second.

It is expensive compared to other karting experiences we have done and it’s questionable whether you get a significantly better time.

But be in no doubt that F1 Drive will give you some amazing thrills. There is also a shorter track for children to test their skills on.

The final part of our day was a tour of the stadium.

We were on the last timed slot of the day but there is normally no limit for how long you can spend.

We were advised 90 minutes but we spent more than two hours wandering around.

At the start, you’re given a short introductory talk and video before being provided with an audio guide.

This contains plenty of content for the tour and allows you to take on as much or as little information as you want.

The tour takes you to many areas behind the scenes of the stadium, including pitch side and the chance to sit in the manager’s incredibly comfortable heated seat.

The tour takes you on what is dubbed the player’s journey - including the dressing rooms, physio and warm-up areas and the interview spaces where they are quizzed by the press.

You even get the chance to visit hospitality areas and see the cavernous NFL dressing rooms - fit for more than 50 players!

There are guides on hand in each room to answer any questions and they were really helpful and informative during our trip around.

There are also plenty of great photo opportunities.

There are also options to do a stadium tour with a club legend or a heritage tour, in which visitors are taken on a guided trip around historic sites related to the club near to the stadium.

Spurs are set for a quiet deadline day with outgoings the priority after a summer where Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall, Wilson Odobert and Dominic Solanke have arrived.

Tottenham are ready to sanction moves for out-of-favour duo Sergio Reguilon and Giovani Lo Celso, but Postecoglou has all but ruled out any more signings before 11pm.

“Unless something surprising jumps out at us in the last 11 hours or whatever it is, that’s it for us,” the Spurs boss confirmed ahead of Sunday’s trip to Newcastle.

“If nothing else happens, there’s a couple probably moving out, I think it’s been another positive window.

“You want to go into every window and come out the other side of it in a stronger sense and I certainly feel that.

“The players we’ve brought in are already making a short-term impact and even in the longer term, I think they’re going to be really good contributors for us.

“I certainly think we’ve got a more well-rounded squad to deal with Europe, the extra games and whatever injuries we have. So yeah, I think it’s been a real positive window.

“I’m very happy. We’ve done a hell of a lot of work in 12 months, three windows. No doubts the squad’s changed.

“The demographic of the squad has changed, the suitability to the football I want to play, we’re much better equipped for that. There’s growth in the team, absolutely.

“We needed to do some fairly major work 12 months ago and since then we’ve gone a long way to getting the team to where we want to.

“There’s still more work to be done. It was never going to happen quickly. I don’t think it should happen quickly. When it does happen quickly, you’re more fraught to getting it wrong. So I think we’re in a good place.”

With Reguilon and Lo Celso into the final 12 months of their contracts at Tottenham, Postecoglou made clear his desire for them to move on.

Real Betis are reportedly interested in bringing Lo Celso back to the club, but Reguilon’s future could be decided after Friday’s 11pm deadline with other transfer windows shutting later in September.

“It’s fair to say both players are exploring options,” Postecoglou said.

“There’s other windows open as well, so we’ll see what activity there is, but they’re both exploring options.

“They’ve got decisions about their own careers and what they want to do.

“If they’re still here, they’re still here. We’ll work around that scenario, but it certainly won’t affect the way we work in the first team.”

Spurs will be without both Dominic Solanke (ankle) and Richarlison (muscle) for the trip to Newcastle.

Rodrigo Bentancur is available after he passed concussion protocols, but Postecoglou expressed his frustration for Richarlison, who missed the whole of pre-season following a calf injury.

“Richy pulled up sore. I think there’s a muscle injury there, we’re just getting more information, but he’ll be out as well,” Postecoglou said.

“It’s frustrating probably for him as much as anyone else but frustrating for us, too.”

Alfie Devine is expected to leave Spurs on loan and Under-21 goalkeeper Josh Keeley is set to join Leyton Orient on loan, the PA news agency understands.