Tottenham can win the Champions League says January signing Lucas Moura

Tottenham Hotspur can have realistic ambitions of breaking their trophy duck under Mauricio Pochettino and beating a glittering array of competition to winning this season's Champions League, according to January signing Lucas Moura.

Spurs took a giant step towards securing passage to the quarter-finals after recovering from conceding two Gonzalo Higuain goals inside the opening nine minutes to draw 2-2 with Juventus in the first leg of their last-16 tie in Turin.

Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen netted either side of half-time to give Tottenham the upperhand heading into the second leg in a fortnight (7 March) at Wembley Stadium, though Pochettino's men are not fancied to go all the way in the competition.

Manchester City, who prevailed 4-0 in Basel in their round of 16 first leg, and Barcelona ahead of their clash with Chelsea, are rated as the favourites according to the bookmakers (Oddschecker). Bayern Munich, holders Real Madrid, Liverpool and Paris-Saint Germain are next in the pecking order.

But Moura, less than three weeks on from swapping PSG for the English capital, feels Tottenham should be considered among the front-runners for the competition 10 years on from their last major triumph when they won the League Cup in the 2007-08 season.

"Every player wants to win trophies, to make history and I am here to make history with my new friends," he said, according to quotes carried by The Evening Standard and Sky Sports. "I believe that because we have a lot of quality, a great structure and I think we can dream with the Champions League.

"Why not [win the Champions League]? I gained a lot of experience at PSG and I think I can help Tottenham. The Champions League is the most difficult cup but I think we have the capacity to win. If we always think positive, always work hard.

"I think we did a big game against Juventus away. It's not easy to score in Italy. I think we had a good result and the next game I am sure that we can win, that we can do a big game with our fans and to continue."

Despite arriving in England having scored over a half of century of goals for PSG and with 34 caps for his country Brazil, Moura has been forced to wait for his chance at Tottenham.

His arrival on deadline day [31 January] ensured he was ineligible to face Manchester United on the same evening, but he was left out of the squad which faced Liverpool in the Premier League and Newport County in the FA Cup.

The former Sao Paulo winger was then an unused substitute in the 1-0 north London derby win over Arsenal before making his senior Tottenham debut as an 89<sup>th minute substitute against Juve last week.

Pochettino then saw it fit to give Moura his full debut for the FA Cup fifth round trip to Rochdale, where he played 71 minutes and scored Tottenham's equaliser at Spotland as the League One side struck in stoppage time to secure a 2-2 draw and a replay at the home of English football.

Moura, 25, has admitted to being frustrated by his lack of opportunities but is willing to be patient going forward.

"It's too difficult for a player when we don't play," Moura said. "We want always to be on the pitch, to play, but in this time I worked very hard and I stayed always positive, with my family, with my friends, always working, and waited for my new opportunity. I think I do a good game and I'm so happy for that."