Champions League or Europa League: What’s really best for Tottenham?
New York TimesThis time two years ago, Tottenham Hotspur were involved in an extremely tight battle for Champions League qualification. There’s some merit to this idea — witness Nottingham Forest last summer persuading Ibrahim Sangare to swap a key role at PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League for a Premier League relegation battle. Generally, Spurs signed players last summer that Champions League clubs weren’t rivalling them for. English top-flight clubs have an advantage over their European counterparts because of the Premier League’s mammoth TV rights deals, but the income from Champions League football is still an extremely useful bit of financial leverage. For some fans, wanting the Europa League may be a defence mechanism so they’re not too disappointed if Champions League qualification doesn’t happen.