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SIX CHANGES EXPECTED: THOMAS FRANK PRIORITIZES SQUAD FRESHNESS FOR SLAVIA PRAGUE MATCH

Tottenham aims to climb into the UCL top eight against Slavia Prague. Thomas Frank faces selection issues with Udogie and Johnson out, forcing rotation.

Six Changes Expected: Thomas Frank Prioritizes Squad Freshness for Slavia Prague Match
Spurs Seek Top-Eight Spot vs. Slavia Prague.

After their first league win in a month, Thomas Frank and Tottenham now focus on the Champions League. They're hosting Slavia Prague, hoping to climb into the top eight.

The mood around Tottenham is better after Saturday's 2-0 victory over Brentford. It was their first league win since October. Xavi Simons set up the first goal and then scored himself, helping Spurs get their second home win this season.

They're currently 10th in the league. A win against his former club won't immediately get Thomas Frank back in the fans' good graces. He still has work to do.

In the Champions League, Tottenham lost their first game of the season in a wild 5-3 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain, which put them at 16th in the table. Still, despite their home struggles, Spurs haven't lost a European home game in over five years. Fans are hoping Frank can keep that record going.

Slavia Prague is at the top of the Czech Liga and hasn't lost in their league this season. They've won four of their last five games in all competitions, including a scoreless tie with Athletic Club in their last European match.

Their struggle has been bringing that level of play to Europe. They're currently 31st in the Champions League table with three draws and two losses in five games, including a 3-0 defeat to Arsenal last month.

Tottenham Team Update:

Destiny Udogie wasn't available against Brentford due to what Thomas Frank called a minor tissue issue. He said he'd be back soon, but he hadn't seen training with the team before this game.

Brennan Johnson also missed training, surprisingly. He's out for the PSG game because of a red card in his previous Champions League match.

The good news is that Kota Takai, Ben Davies, Radu Dragusin, Mathys Tel, and Kolo Muani were all training as usual. Muani was seen limping off during the Brentford match.

But Tel, Takai, and Dragusin can't play because they're not on Spurs’ European squad. Also, there's still no sign of Dominic Solanke returning.

Slavia Prague Team Update:

U21 Slovakian defender Dominik Javorcek is getting close to his return. Petr Sevcik, Oscar Dorley, and Lukas Vorlicky are questionable for this game.

Head coach Jindrich Trpisovsky has confirmed that Filip Horsky is out.

LEAGUE UPDATE: MAN UNITED’S CHAMPIONS LEAGUE HOPES BOOSTED BY COEFFICIENT POINTS SURGE

Manchester United move into fourth place as England's dominant UEFA coefficient makes a fifth Champions League spot almost certain.

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Confirmed: Fifth place in PL likely to earn UCL qualification this season

Manchester United just got a real shot in the arm for their Champions League hopes this season. After knocking off Manchester City and Arsenal in back-to-back games, they’ve climbed into fourth place in the Premier League. It’s been a struggle for United to make the Champions League in recent years—their last run was in the 2023/24 season.

These days, finishing in the top four isn’t always enough for Premier League teams. UEFA now hands out extra spots, and it all depends on how clubs from each country perform across the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League.

So, how does it work? UEFA takes each league’s overall coefficient score—basically, a measure of how well their teams do in Europe—and divides it by the number of clubs they have in these competitions.

This season, Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham, Chelsea, Manchester City, and Newcastle all joined the European fight. Out of those six, only Newcastle had to go through the play-offs; the rest sailed straight into the knockouts.

Now that the Champions League group stage is done, you can really see which countries are in line for those bonus spots next year. Right now, England is out in front with 180,625 points. Germany follows with 107,000. Portugal sits in third with 14,700, and Spain is just behind on 14,375.

Here’s the key thing: the two countries whose teams rack up the best results across all three competitions this season each get a European Performance Spot—an extra Champions League place.

With England leading the pack, even a fifth-place finish in the Premier League could send United back into the Champions League instead of the Europa League. Newcastle took advantage of this last season.

If United hold onto fourth, they’re in. But there’s still a lot of football left. Interim boss Michael Carrick isn’t letting anyone get ahead of themselves—he’s already told his players to stay sharp.

Next up, United face Fulham at Old Trafford. They'll be chasing a third straight win and looking to keep Carrick’s perfect record going since he stepped in for Darren Fletcher.

JUST IN: PEP GUARDIOLA THANKS JOSE MOURINHO AFTER WILD NIGHT OF EUROPEAN DRAMA

Pep Guardiola thanks Jose Mourinho as Benfica’s last-gasp winner against Real Madrid sends City straight into the Last-16.

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Pep Guardiola’s oldest rival just saved City’s season

Pep Guardiola had a smile on his face and a message for Jose Mourinho after his old rival did him a huge favour, helping Manchester City sneak into the Champions League knockout rounds.

City took care of their own business, beating Galatasaray 2-0 at the Etihad. Haaland and Cherki got the goals, but the real drama was happening elsewhere. City’s spot in the last eight still hung in the balance because Real Madrid needed to equalise against Benfica. If they had, Guardiola’s squad would have been bumped into the play-offs instead.

That’s when Benfica’s goalkeeper, Anatoliy Trubin, pulled off something wild. He left his box, charged forward for a late free kick, and scored a brilliant goal. Benfica won 4-2. That goal kept Benfica alive in the competition—and, as it turned out, saved City too.

Guardiola admitted he and his players were glued to the screen in the dressing room, completely confused when they saw Trubin running up for that last free kick. “We were all in there, watching, and none of us realised Benfica still needed a goal to qualify,” Guardiola said. “So when their keeper went up, we’re all thinking, ‘What are you doing?’ But Jose knew. It was a smart move. Finishing in the top eight, with how tough the Champions League has become, feels really good for us. Now we can focus on being at our best by March.”

Bernardo Silva didn’t hide how relieved he felt. Skipping those extra play-off games really matters, especially when you’re chasing a quadruple. “A bit of drama, but we did it. We’re very happy because we avoid two more matches,” he said. “With all the injuries we’ve got and the crazy schedule, having those two weeks free to rest, get players back, and focus on the other competitions is huge for us.”

As for Mourinho, he looked proud after Benfica’s wild finish. He’s won this tournament twice before, and he believed his side deserved to stay in. “That was a fantastic goal, a historic moment—almost blew the roof off the stadium,” Mourinho said. “Honestly, for Benfica to beat Real Madrid, that’s massive.”

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