Tottenham face Swiss champions FC Basel in the second leg of a UEFA Europa League quarter final tie on Thursday night, with the aggregate score poised at 2-2 after last midweek's game at White Hart Lane.

Aleksandar Dragovic (R)
Reuters

Where to Watch Live

Kick-off is scheduled for 8.05pm BST. Live coverage is on ITV 1 and ITV 1 HD. Radio commentary is on BBC Radio 5 live.

Overview

Basel come into this game after a 1-1 draw away to St Gallen, in the Swiss Super League, on Sunday. Murat Yakin's men lead their domestic championship with 53 points from 26 games but they are only a point ahead of Grasshoppers in the race for a 16th title.

Thursday evening's hosts are on a four-match unbeaten run, with Zenit St Petersburg the last side to upset the Swiss. The Russians were 1-0 winners at the Petrovsky Stadium but a 2-0 win for Basel at St Jakob Park, in the first leg of the Europa League tie, allowed the Swiss through to the next round.

Basel have been very impressive at home this season, winning 10 of 13 league games with 28 goals scored and only six conceded. European results have been mixed; a 3-0 defeat of Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon is balanced with a 1-1 draw to Norwegians Molde, in the third round of qualifying for the Champions League. The good news, though, is they have not conceded at home, in a European fixture, since the 2-2 draw against Belgians Genk, in early October.

Emmanuel Adebayor
Reuters

Tottenham will kick-off with two consecutive 2-2 draws in recent games: first to Basel and then, on the weekend, against Everton in a Premier League match.

Spurs' Champions Leagues aspirations may have been dealt a fatal blow after the draw to David Moyes' side. The result leaves them in fourth in the league and two points ahead of Arsenal. However, the Gunners have a game in hand.

In terms of recent form, AVB's men have won only once in the last five games; a run that includes the 4-1 hammering by Inter Milan, at the Giuseppe Meazza. Fortunately for the London club, and like Basel's defeat to Zenit, the emphatic nature of the first leg win propelled Tottenham past the Italians.

Spurs' last few games have raised the spectre of a spectacular end-of-season collapse, similar to the one under Harry Redknapp last season and although AVB has played down such fears, the pressure will certainly be on the ex-Chelsea boss and his players to put those fears to bed and progress past the Swiss.

Team Form

Basel

  • Last Five (all competitions, most recent first): D D W W L
  • Last Match: St Gallen 1 - 1 FC Basel
Andre Villas-Boas
Reuters

Tottenham

  • Last Five (all competitions, most recent first): D D W L L
  • Last Match: Tottenham 2 - 2 Everton

Team News

Basel will look to Marco Streller, Valentin Stocker and Mohamad Salah for creative play once again, with the latter probably the key man. Veteran striker Alexander Frei may lead the line. Defender Park Joo-Ho and midfielder Marcelo Diaz return from suspension.

Probable Line-Up: Sommer; Steinhofer, Voser, Dragovic, Schar; Salah, Cabral, F Frei, Stocker; Strellar, A Frei

William Gallas (calf), Aaron Lennon (knee) and Jermain Defoe (pelvic) are all unavailable and each is a big loss. However, the biggest of them all is Gareth Bale (ankle), who is the club's leading goal scorer this season.

Togo striker Emmanuel Adebayor is the only recognised striker available to AVB and will certainly start. Right-back Kyle Walker returns from suspension and will take his position from Kyle Naughton. Iceland midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson was in good form against the Toffees and may be rewarded with a start, slotting into Bale's central attacking role.

Probable Line-Up: Friedel; Walker, Vertonghen, Dawson, Assou-Ekotto; Holtby, Dembele, Parker, Dempsey; Sigurdsson; Adebayor

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