Harry Kane
Kane scored a hattrick against Fulham Getty

Tottenham Hotspur host Gent in the second leg of the Europa league on Thursday, 23 February as they look to reverse a 1-0 deficit from their loss in the reverse fixture.

Where to Watch Live

Kick-off is set for 8:05pm GMT. Live coverage of the game will be on BT Sport 2 and BT Sport 2 HD.

Overview

The hosts will be without left-back Danny Rose and midfielder Erik Lamela due to injury. Rose missed their last four matches after suffering a knee setback in January following their 0-0 draw with Sunderland, while Lamela has missed the last four months with a hip injury. However, Jan Vertonghen is back fit and is expected to start.

Spurs have been absolutely woeful at Wembley this season where they played their European home games, losing five of their last six matches, only beating CSKA Moscow there in December. They come into the game on the back of a 3-0 thrashing of Fulham, with Harry Kane scoring a hattrick to pull Spurs into the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, where they will play Millwall.

Their record against Belgian sides has also been far from exemplary, winning only one of their last four European games against such opposition.

Meanwhile, Gent's only other game on English soil came against West Ham in a 1-1 draw in the first round of the Cup Winners' Cup in 1964/65. Their main threat will come from Danijel Milicevic, who has created more chances than any other player in the Europa League this season.

What Managers Say

Mauricio Pochettino: "When we start a game, if you only watch 50 seconds - and you don't have to be a genius - you can see we may struggle because we weren't focused. We changed the formation at half-time in Gent to try and lift them, but it was impossible. The problem is when you start not in a good way, it's too difficult to change that perception and then you give a very good signal to the opponent that you are not focused on the game. We cannot buy time. It's too easy to say we want to win titles and move the club to the next level, like when you are building the training facility and the new stadium. It takes time to create the new stadium and it takes time to create a team capable of winning trophies. We are in that process to try to build a really very good squad to try to fight with the big sides to win titles." (via Express)

Hein Vanhaezebrouck: "We have achieved a good result at home, but tomorrow will be another matter. We were in Gent to 100%, and I read everywhere that Tottenham was only 50%. So we will see tomorrow the difference in these fantastic conditions. Why are we here to train now, while some special trainers do not? I'm a normal guy, I'm not a special guy. There is already a "Normal One" in England, but I'm a normal guy. In this way, the players can already adapt a first time. Last year we did it already in Valencia. When my players were not impressed by what they thought would be an old stadium, until she stood. Seeing history. Here hangs no history, but it is a special place. " (via Nieuwsblad)

Betting Odds (betfair)

  • Tottenham win: 3/10
  • Draw: 5
  • Gent Win: 10

Team News

Tottenham

Possible XI: Lloris; Walker, Vertonghen, Alderweireld, Davies; Wanyama, Dembele; Eriksen, Alli, Son; Kane.

Gent

Possible XI: Kalinic; Gigot, Mitrovic, Asare; Foket, Dejaegere, Esiti, Saief; Simon, Milicevic; Osorio.

Tottenham Hotspur FC