In the Money: If Gary Lineker is right, Tottenham will pocket at least £12m in UEFA windfall
Gary Lineker has suggested that Tottenham could make a return to the UEFA Champions League next season, which would bring a much-welcomed financial boost to the North London club.
Ange Postecoglou has made a bright start to life in England’s top flight, overseeing wins against the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United, as well as a draw away at arch-rivals Arsenal.
A mixture of injuries to key players as well as various suspensions has led to a dip in form, with Spurs losing back-to-back games prior to the international break. However, the club still remain fourth in the Premier League, five points ahead of sixth-placed Manchester United.
With the absence of European football and the Carabao Cup to offer as distractions, Tottenham can prioritise their league fixtures as they look to make an instant return to Europe after missing out last season.
Playing in the Champions League will understandably be priority number one for Daniel Levy and those associated with the club, and Lineker has suggested this is more than achievable while in conversation with Micah Richards on the Rest is Football podcast (24 November).
Richards started by saying, “I think they can get Champions League if everyone is fit.”
Lineker responded, “Well two big players won’t be fit until the New Year at least. James Maddison, who has been absolutely brilliant, one of the signings of the season I think we would all agree, as has Micky van de Ven. To lose one of them is bad luck but two!”
The back and forth continued, as Richards said, “And then to lose Cristian Romero, your partnership, we talked about them being the partnership of the season so far. To lose that… It’s very difficult to predict. If they were all fit I would say Champions League but I would like to see when they are going to be back. I am going to say they could slip into that number five position for the Champions League.”
Lineker concluded, “I wouldn’t disagree with that. We said Europe at the start of the season but I think we were all probably forgetting a little bit that it’s very likely that the Premier League have five teams in the Champions League next season.”
If Lineker’s prediction is to come true, Spurs will benefit just as much off the pitch as they will on it.
As per The Shields Gazette (10 October), qualification to Europe’s elite competition alone is worth £12.78million, while each win during the group stages of the competition is worth an additional £2.4million.
Should Spurs qualify from their group, elimination from the Round of 16 would be worth £8.3million, with that total increasing the further a team gets into the competition.
With broadcasting deals and extra match receipts for the increased number of fixtures to take into account, it is clear that returning to the competition is a very lucrative prospect for the club, although it is important to consider what that money is used for.
It is widely apparent at this moment in time that Postecoglou does not have enough quality depth in his squad, and the injuries are already piling up without the demands of European football.
Therefore, if Spurs were to qualify for the Champions League next season, they would need a much deeper squad to have any chance of performing well and building a strong foundation for consistent qualification.
Levy and the board have shown in the past they are often reluctant to dip into their pockets when it comes to the transfer window, although these latest financial figures clearly demonstrate that it could be a worthwhile investment.
In other Tottenham news, one Spurs expert has shared relief ahead of the club’s clash with “phenomenal” Aston Villa.