Tottenham Hotspur put Real Madrid to the sword on Wednesday evening.
If people were not taking Tottenham Hotspur’s Champions League aspirations seriously before, they certainly are now, with Spurs’ 3-1 win against Real Madrid laying down a marker to every other side in the competition.
While Tottenham have a brilliant manager and a strong squad, there could be another advantage as they head into the knockout stages – one that previously appeared to be more of a hindrance than a help.
Tottenham are playing their matches at Wembley this season, meaning that they are in essence playing away even when they are playing at home, and developing the right mentality to deal with that could see them go all the way in Europe.
After all, too many clubs rely on their home form to get them through, but without the White Hart Lane crowds cheering them on – at least from more familiar surroundings – Tottenham are being forced to up their game and respond accordingly.
It has already worked wonders against both Madrid and Borussia Dortmund and, at this rate, there is no one they will not be quietly confident of beating if they get the rub of the green.
There is a very long way to go, but playing all your European games away forces you to develop the kind of siege mentality that generates winners and it will be interesting to see how Tottenham cope in the knockout stages early next year.
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