Sports Mole

Pape Sarr and Brennan Johnson were on the scoresheet as Tottenham Hotspur recorded a 2-1 victory over Ferencvaros in Thursday night's Europa League contest in Budapest.

Lacklustre defending allowed Sarr to send Tottenham ahead in the 23rd minute of the contest, with the midfielder sweeping into the bottom corner after Ferencvaros failed to deal with a loose ball inside the box.

Tottenham dominated the possession in the opening half of action, having 62% of the ball, while they had seven attempts, with three of those on target, but Ferencvaros were carrying a threat of their own.

Ferencvaros were pushing forward, as expected, in the second half in a bid to secure a share of the spoils, but the hosts lacked a cutting edge in the final third of the field throughout the contest.

Johnson scored for the fifth game in a row in the 86th minute, but Tottenham had to survive a late scare in the European clash, as Barnabas Varga netted in the 90th minute to give the home fans something to cheer.

The victory is another huge step in the right direction for Tottenham, with the North London outfit now triumphing in their last five matches in all competitions, including a 3-0 success over Manchester United in the Premier League last time out.

The success has also moved Spurs into second position in the Europa League table, boasting six points from their opening two games, while Ferencvaros are down in 32nd, having lost their opening two games of the competition.

FERENCVAROS VS. TOTTENHAM HIGHLIGHTS

Pape Sarr goal vs. Ferencvaros (23rd min, Ferencvaros 0-1 Tottenham)

Tottenham make the breakthrough in the 23rd minute of the European affair, and it is Sarr on the scoresheet.

Following some poor defending from the home side, the ball falls kindly for Sarr inside the penalty box, and the midfielder makes no mistake from close range to break the deadlock.

Brennan Johnson goal vs. Ferencvaros (86th min, Ferencvaros 0-2 Tottenham)

Tottenham double their lead in the 86th minute of the match as Johnson fires into the bottom corner to surely secure all three points for the visitors, who have that winning feeling at the moment.

Barnabas Varga goal vs. Tottenham (90th min, Ferencvaros 1-2 Tottenham)

Late drama! Ferencvaros get their name on the scoresheet in the final minute of normal time, with Varga turning a dangerous cross from Cristian Ramirez into the back of the net from close range.

MAN OF THE MATCH - PEDRO PORRO

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Sarr deserves a mention in this category, but the man-of-the-match award does to Pedro Porro due to his overall performance for Tottenham on Thursday night.

The 25-year-old came close to scoring, hitting the woodwork, while he had five successful dribbles and managed 60 accurate passes, with Porro a key contributor to his side's success in Hungary.

FERENCVAROS VS. TOTTENHAM MATCH STATS

Possession: Ferencvaros 43%-57% Tottenham

Shots: Ferencvaros 12-17 Tottenham

Shots on target: Ferencvaros 5-7 Tottenham

Corners: Ferencvaros 4-11 Tottenham

Fouls: Ferencvaros 10-13 Tottenham

BEST STATS

WHAT NEXT?

Tottenham will now switch their attention back to the Premier League, with Ange Postecoglou's side preparing to head to Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday afternoon.

Ferencvaros, meanwhile, will be aiming to return to winning ways when they take on Paks in Hungary's top flight on Sunday evening.

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Tottenham Hotspur travel to the Groupama Arena in Budapest to face Ferencvaros in the Europa League on Thursday evening.

Both teams secured 3-0 victories on the domestic front last weekend, with Spurs crushing Manchester United at Old Trafford in the Premier League and Ferencvaros beating Puskas Akademia in the Hungarian top flight, and here, Sports Mole rounds up all of the latest team news for the two clubs.

FERENCVAROS vs. TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

FERENCVAROS

Out: None

Doubtful: None

Sports Mole's predicted XI: Dibusz; Botka, Cisse, Szalai, Ramirez; Abu Fani, Rommens; Kady, Zachariassen, Traore; Varga

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

Out: Radu Dragusin (suspended), Richarlison (calf), Wilson Odobert (hamstring), Son Heung-min (hamstring), Destiny Udogie (thigh)

Doubtful: None

Sports Mole's predicted XI: Vicario; Gray, Romero, Van de Ven, Davies; Sarr, Bissouma, Bergvall; Johnson, Solanke, Werner

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here. body check tags ::

Ange Postecoglou has confirmed whether Son Heung-min and Destiny Udogie will be fit for Tottenham Hotspur's Europa League clash with Ferencvaros on Thursday.

The Lilywhites boarded the flight to Hungary seeking to make it two for two in this year's revamped competition, having overcome Radu Dragusin's early red card to defeat Qarabag 3-1 on matchday one.

The triumph over the Azerbaijani giants preceded an emphatic 3-0 Premier League victory over Manchester United, who were torn to shreds by Postecoglou's side even without the services of captain Son.

The South Korean attacker had picked up a knock in the Qarabag success and was not deemed fit enough to turn out at Old Trafford, where left-back Udogie was taken off at half time due to a quadriceps problem.

Postecoglou insisted that the defender's problem was not severe, although having had surgery on his quad towards the end of last season, the Tottenham boss has unsurprisingly erred on the side of caution this time around.

Son, Udogie ruled out of Tottenham's clash with Qarabag

Speaking to SPURSplay before his pre-game press conference, Postecoglou announced that Son and Udogie had both been left at home to continue their rehabilitation, but there are no fresh concerns from the win over Man United.

"Sonny and Destiny are back in London. They're working away, but they're not available for this one. Everyone else from the weekend got through the game and is good to go," Postecoglou said.

Son and Udogie are two of five Tottenham absentees for the showdown with Ferencvaros, as Wilson Odobert (thigh) and Richarlison (calf) are also missing, while Dragusin serves his one-game suspension following his early dismissal on matchday one.

The clash with the Hungarian giants is a prime opportunity for Postecoglou to hand minutes to fringe players and academy prospects, and one player who falls into the former category is exiled left-back Sergio Reguilon, but he will not be involved in Budapest despite travelling with the team.

The former Sevilla man has not played a single minute for Tottenham this season and has only made one matchday squad, being an unused substitute in the EFL Cup third-round win over Coventry City.

Postecoglou reveals reason for Reguilon inclusion

Reguilon was not included in Spurs' Europa League squad and is therefore not eligible to play on Thursday evening, so his selection naturally raised a few eyebrows.

However, Postecoglou said that the Spaniard's call-up was merely for practice purposes, saying: "We've got training sessions (here), so we've brought young players and Reggy, just to make sure the quality of our training is what it needs to be today."

With Udogie absent and Reguilon ineligible, Ben Davies is likely to get the nod on the left-hand side of the backline, having played the full 90 minutes in the triumph over Qarabag.

Fraser Forster, Archie Gray and Lucas Bergvall - who was taken off after just 12 minutes against Qarabag due to Dragusin's red card - are also likely to be promoted to the starting lineup, while young stars Mikey Moore and Will Lankshear will be in contention for minutes too.

While Tottenham have never faced Ferencvaros before, Postecoglou met the Hungarian champions in the 2021-22 Europa League while in charge of Celtic, masterminding a 3-2 away win and 2-0 home victory.

Tottenham Hotspur will endeavour to win their fifth game in a row across all competitions when they travel to the Groupama Arena in Budapest to face Ferencvaros in the Europa League on Thursday evening.

This fixture represents the first meeting between these two clubs and Spurs' first-ever encounter with Hungarian opposition.

Match preview

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Since suffering back-to-back Premier League defeats against Newcastle United (2-1) and Arsenal (0-1), Tottenham have turned a corner and have won each of their last four games in all competitions by an aggregate score of 11-2.

Ange Postecoglou's side secured a 3-0 home victory against Azerbaijani outfit Qarabag in their opening Europa League fixture last week despite playing for over 83 minutes with 10 men, and just three days later, they put Manchester United to the sword in impressive fashion by the same scoreline.

Bruno Fernandes was shown a straight red card for the Red Devils on the stroke of half time, but that should take nothing away from Tottenham's dominant showing at Old Trafford, with Brennan Johnson, Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke all on the scoresheet to help the visitors cruise to victory and climb to eighth in the Premier League table, three points behind the top four.

Spurs are currently the bookmakers' favourite to go all the way and win the Europa League this term, but they enter Thursday's contest with Ferencvaros having won only one of their last nine European away matches (D2 L6) - a 2-1 success against Marseille in the Champions League in November 2022.

Tottenham may have never faced Ferencvaros before, but Postecoglou has come up against the Hungarian side twice in his managerial career, leading former club Celtic to a 2-0 home win and a 3-2 away victory in the 2021-22 Europa League group stage.

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Since winning their sixth consecutive Nemzeti Bajnoksag I title - and 35th in their history - last season, finishing a comfortable 16 points ahead of their nearest challengers, Ferencvaros have won 10, drawn two and lost two of their 14 competitive matches across all competitions at the start of this campaign.

Ferencvaros missed out on qualifying for the Champions League earlier this term, after suffering a 3-1 aggregate defeat to FC Midtjylland in the third qualifying round, but they secured their spot in the newly-expanded Europa League thanks to a 3-2 penalty-shootout triumph over Bosnian side FK Borac Banja Luka in the playoff round, following a 1-1 draw over two legs.

Managed by London-born Dutch coach Pascal Jansen, Ferencvaros fell to a 2-1 defeat away against Anderlecht in their opening Europa League fixture last week, with Adama Traore's fifth goal of the season ultimately proving to be just a consolation strike four minutes from time.

The Greens quickly bounced back from that defeat, though, and have preserved their perfect start in the Hungarian top flight after beating Puskas Akademia 3-0 in a top-of-the-table showdown last weekend, thanks to a superb second-half hat-trick from substitute Matheus Saldanha.

Ferencvaros are now gearing up for arguably their toughest test in the League Phase of this season's Europa League against Tottenham on Thursday, but they can take heart from the fact that they have only lost one of their previous 10 European home games (W5 D4) against English opposition - losing 3-0 to Leeds United back in 1969 in the European Cup.

Ferencvaros Europa League form:

Ferencvaros form (all competitions):

Tottenham Hotspur Europa League form:

Tottenham Hotspur form (all competitions):

Team News

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Ferencvaros appear to have a clean bill of health at present and Jansen is expected to name his strongest possible starting lineup, with a number of changes to be made to the side that beat Puskas Akademia last weekend.

Endre Botka, Gabor Szalai and Cristian Ramirez could all be recalled to join Ibrahim Cisse in defence, although Raul Gustavo could also retain his place if Jansen opts to select a back five, while Philippe Rommens may replace Habib Maiga and partner Mohammad Abu Fani in centre-midfield.

Adama Traore could move over from the right to the left flank if Kady is recalled, while Norwegian playmaker Kristoffer Zachariassen is set to operate centrally in behind either Barnabas Varga or Matheus Saldanha up front.

As for Tottenham, Radu Dragusin is suspended after being sent off against Qarabag last week, while Richarlison (muscle) and Wilson Odobert (hamstring) both remain sidelined with injuries.

Destiny Udogie was taken off at half time in the win at Man United on Sunday with a thigh problem, while Son Heung-min missed out entirely due to a hamstring issue, and both players are doubtful for Thursday's contest.

Postecoglou will consider making some changes to his starting lineup, with Archie Gray and Ben Davies in line to start as full-backs, while Yves Bissouma, Pape Matar Sarr and Lucas Bergvall will all be pushing for starts in midfield.

Ferencvaros possible starting lineup:

Dibusz; Botka, Cisse, Szalai, Ramirez; Abu Fani, Rommens; Kady, Zachariassen, Traore; Varga

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:

Vicario; Gray, Romero, Van de Ven, Davies; Sarr, Bissouma, Bergvall; Johnson, Solanke, Werner

We say: Ferencvaros 0-2 Tottenham Hotspur

Ferencvaros are regarded as one of the weaker teams in this season's Europa League, but they will hope to frustrate Tottenham on Thursday and should not be taken lightly by Postecoglou's side. Nevertheless, even if the Aussie boss opts to freshen up his starting lineup, it is difficult to back against Spurs coming out on top in this one.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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Tottenham Hotspur could be without up to five players for Thursday's Europa League clash with Ferencvaros at the Groupama Arena in Budapest.

Radu Dragusin is suspended after being sent off in the seventh-minute of Spurs' Europa League opener against Qarabag last week (3-0 win), while Richarlison (muscle) and Wilson Odobert (hamstring) remain sidelined with injuries.

Destiny Udogie was taken off at half time in Tottenham's 3-0 Premier League win at Manchester United on Sunday with a thigh problem, while Son Heung-min missed out entirely due to a hamstring issue, and both players are doubtful for Thursday's contest.

Ange Postecoglou will consider making some changes to his starting lineup, with Archie Gray potentially being recalled at right-back at the expense of Pedro Porro, while Ben Davies is set to start at left-back regardless as to whether Udogie is deemed fit to feature.

Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven - the latter of whom produced a barnstorming run through Man United's midfield to provide an assist for Tottenham's opening goal last weekend - are the only two first-team centre-back options available to Postecoglou and are therefore set to continue in the first XI.

Yves Bissouma, Pape Matar Sarr and Lucas Bergvall will all be pushing for starts in midfield, with Dejan Kulusevski, Rodrigo Bentancur and James Maddison potentially given a rest, while Brennan Johnson - who has scored in each of his last four appearances - Timo Werner and Mikey Moore are all set to battle for starts in attack with Dominic Solanke.

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup: Vicario; Gray, Romero, Van de Ven, Davies; Sarr, Bissouma, Bergvall; Johnson, Solanke, Werner

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Ipswich vs. Aston Villa (Sunday, 2.00pm)

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Seeking a sixth successive victory across all competitions, high-flying Aston Villa head to Portman Road to pit their wits against Ipswich Town on Sunday afternoon.

The Lions sealed progression to the fourth round of the EFL Cup with a 2-1 victory over Wycombe Wanderers in midweek, while the Tractor Boys have had a week to reflect on a dramatic 1-1 draw with newly-promoted Southampton.

We say: Ipswich Town 1-3 Aston Villa

A defensively depleted Villa may already be casting one eye over to the imminent visit of Bayern Munich and should not leave Portman Road with any clean sheets against an energetic Ipswich side, who can be sure to hustle and harry their visitors.

However, the Lions should make their presence felt at the other end of the field to extend their terrific winning sequence and remain on the coat-tails of Liverpool and Manchester City.

> Click here to read our full preview for this match

> Phillips to return? How Ipswich could line up against Villa

> McGinn missing and a depleted defence: How Villa could line up against Ipswich

Man Utd vs. Spurs (Sunday, 4.30pm)

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Having made differing starts to their Europa League journeys, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur now prepare to lock horns in Sunday's Premier League blockbuster at Old Trafford.

The pressure continues to pile on Erik ten Hag's shoulders following the hosts' 1-1 draw with FC Twente, while 10-man Spurs put three past Qarabag without reply on Thursday evening.

We say: Manchester United 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur

While Tottenham only boast a paltry three away wins in the Premier League over the past 10 months, the Lilywhites have won a staggering 28 points from losing positions since the start of last season, second only to Manchester City's 31.

Therefore, even if Ten Hag's wildly inconsistent troops can draw first blood, they will surely be pegged back in a similar vein to midweek, as Spurs leave Old Trafford with a share of the spoils for the third season running.

> Click here to read our full preview for this match

> Son concern, Dragusin decision: How Tottenham could line up against Man United

> Rashford dropped? How Man United could line up against Tottenham

> Son concern: Tottenham injury, suspension list vs. Man United

> Shaw, Yoro latest: Man United injury, suspension news vs. Tottenham

Only goal difference can separate Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur in the middle of the Premier League standings heading into Sunday's Old Trafford blockbuster.

While the Red Devils were held to a 1-1 draw by FC Twente in their Europa League opener in midweek, the Lilywhites strode to a 3-0 win over Qarabag, and here Sports Mole rounds up the team news for both clubs.

MANCHESTER UNITED vs. TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

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MANCHESTER UNITED

Out: Leny Yoro (foot), Tyrell Malacia (knee), Victor Lindelof (toe), Luke Shaw (calf)

Doubtful: None

Sports Mole's predicted XI: Onana; Mazraoui, De Ligt, Martinez, Dalot; Eriksen, Mainoo; Diallo, Fernandes, Garnacho; Zirkzee

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

Out: Wilson Odobert (thigh), Richarlison (calf)

Doubtful: Son Heung-min (unspecified)

Sports Mole's predicted XI: Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Kulusevski, Bentancur, Maddison; Johnson, Solanke, Son

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

Tottenham Hotspur Women will attempt to claim a second straight victory when they travel to Villa Park for Sunday's clash with Aston Villa Women.

While Spurs kicked off the campaign with a dominant victory, Villa began their Women's Super League campaign with a narrow defeat to Chelsea.

Match preview

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Aston Villa have entered the 2024-25 campaign with a new manager after Robert de Pauw left his role as Bayer Leverkusen boss to take on his first job in the WSL.

De Pauw began his tenure with a narrow 1-0 defeat, but he would have been pleased by his team's battling display in their WSL opener against reigning champions Chelsea.

Villa were ultimately left frustrated by a couple of late Hannah Hampton saves, ensuring Johanna Rytting Kaneryd's first-half effort proved to be the difference between the two sides.

After seeing his side fall just short on matchday one, De Pauw is now preparing for his first WSL home game, with the Villa boss hoping to guide his new club to their first home league victory since December.

The Villans may be able to take confidence from the fact they picked up a 2-1 away victory in their most recent meeting with Tottenham in February.

Meanwhile, the visitors will be looking to claim back-to-back victories after cruising to a 4-0 victory in their WSL opener against Crystal Palace.

Hayley Raso, Jessica Naz, Drew Spence and Olga Ahtinen all got on the scoresheet to get their side off to a winning start.

Spurs will now turn their focus to their first away game of the season, knowing they need to be more consistent on their travels if they are to build upon last season's sixth-place finish.

Robert Vilahamn's side mustered four victories in 11 WSL road trips last term, including one win in their final five away games of the 2023-24 season.

However, they did manage to claim maximum points in last season's away game against Villa, with Martha Thomas netting a hat-trick in a 4-2 victory in October 2023.

Aston Villa Women Women's Super League form:

Tottenham Hotspur Women Women's Super League form:

Team News

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Aston Villa are unable to call upon the services of Anna Leat and Georgia Mullett, who are sidelined with head and hamstring injuries respectively.

Jill Baijings remains sidelined with a back issue, while Gabi Nunes is a doubt due to a lack of match fitness.

Scotland international Kirsty Hanson is in contention for a starting spot after featuring as a half-time substitute against Chelsea.

As for the visitors, they are expected to be without Amy James-Turner, Kit Graham and Shuang Wang due to injury.

Ella Morris sat out the opening game against Palace, but Spurs are hopeful the summer addition will be passed fit for Sunday's contest.

However, Vilahamn has revealed that Luana Buhler has a "small issue" and a late decision will be made over her availability.

Aston Villa Women possible starting lineup:

D'Angelo; Maritz, Patten, Parker, Tomas; Kearns, Nobbs; Grant, Dali, Hanson; Daly

Tottenham Hotspur Women possible starting lineup:

Spencer; Neville, Bartrip, Hunt, Nilden; Oroz, Summanen; Raso, Spence, Naz; Thomas

We say: Aston Villa Women 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur Women

Tottenham will face a tougher test than their opening game against Palace, and we think they could be held to a draw by a Villa side who showed plenty of fight and promise in their narrow defeat to champions Chelsea.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou has not been able to offer any guarantees on Son Heung-min's availability for Sunday's Premier League clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford.

The South Korea international was forced off with a knock in Thursday's 3-0 Europa League success over Qarabag, although Postecoglou immediately downplayed the severity of his problem after the game.

The Tottenham boss also confirmed on Friday that Son was hoping to train over the weekend, suggesting that there is a strong chance the Spurs captain will be available to sport the armband at Old Trafford.

Son has already created 13 chances from open play this season - more than any other player in the Premier League - and has five direct involvements from his last seven appearances against Man United, four of his own and one assist.

The South Korea international will link arms with Dominic Solanke and Brennan Johnson in the attacking trident if given the all-clear, otherwise Dejan Kulusevski could operate in a more advanced position.

However, the Swede will likely join forces with Rodrigo Bentancur and James Maddison as the midfield triumvirate, while Pedro Porro, Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven and Destiny Udogie form the first-choice barrier in front of Guglielmo Vicario.

Radu Dragusin's early red card from Thursday night will apply to Spurs' next Europa League game, meaning that he is fine to feature on Sunday, although he will certainly make way for Romero after his Europa League calamity.

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:

Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Kulusevski, Bentancur, Maddison; Johnson, Solanke, Son

> Click here to see how Man United could line up for this match

No Data Analysis info

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag should be working with an identical group of players for Sunday's Premier League blockbuster against Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford.

The Red Devils were without Leny Yoro (foot), Tyrell Malacia (knee), Victor Lindelof (toe) and Luke Shaw (calf) for the 1-1 draw with FC Twente in the Europa League in midweek, and Ten Hag expects the quartet to sit this one out too.

Following another lackadaisical performance in midweek, Ten Hag will no doubt ring the changes, and the hosting manager faces a particularly tricky dilemma in the final third, where Joshua Zirkzee should continue up front over Rasmus Hojlund.

All of Marcus Rashford, Amad Diallo and Alejandro Garnacho are fighting for two wide spots, and the latter could very well demote the former to the bench for the visit of Spurs, where Bruno Fernandes will finally endeavour to get off the mark for the new campaign.

However, Christian Eriksen certainly made his mark in midweek with a thunderbolt of an opener, and the Dane has likely done enough to reprise his role alongside Kobbie Mainoo, expected to replace Manuel Ugarte.

One change should be afoot in the backline as well, as Harry Maguire was drafted back into the rearguard in midweek, but Matthijs de Ligt will surely return for Premier League duties.

It is otherwise as you were at the back for Man United, as Noussair Mazraoui, Diogo Dalot and Lisandro Martinez protect number one Andre Onana.

Manchester United possible starting lineup:

Onana; Mazraoui, De Ligt, Martinez, Dalot; Eriksen, Mainoo; Diallo, Fernandes, Garnacho; Zirkzee

> Click here to see how Tottenham could line up for this match

No Data Analysis info