RB Leipzig v Tottenham Hotspur

Published on: 09 March 2020

Spurs manager Jose Mourinho has won none of his last seven Champions League knockout matches (D4 L3) since Chelsea beat PSG in April 2014.

Tottenham "have to give everything" to overturn their Champions League last-16 first-leg deficit at RB Leipzig, says manager Jose Mourinho.

Leipzig won the first leg 1-0 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium thanks to Timo Werner's penalty.

Spurs reached last season's final under previous boss Mauricio Pochettino.

"It is one game. We are losing 1-0 at half-time and we have a second half now to play and we go with everything we have," said Mourinho.

Steven Bergwijn - who could miss the rest of the season with an ankle injury - Ben Davies, Harry Kane, Son Heung-min, Moussa Sissoko and Juan Foyth are all sidelined.

Mourinho said the injuries have stopped affecting them as much.

"We were psychologically more down with the other injuries [of Kane and Son]. When you have three, four or five, to have six or seven is the same," he said.

"I am very motivated, very calm, very positive. But if you want to imagine Leipzig without Werner, [Patrik] Schick, [Christopher] Nkunku, [Yussuf] Poulsen, [Emil] Forsberg I am pretty sure the coach [Julian Nagelsmann] would not be laughing as much as I am now."

Leipzig confirmed on Monday that fans will be able to watch the game despite the global coronavirus crisis.

"The chance of a Champions League quarter-final is extremely good," Leipzig head coach Julian Nagelsmann said.

"Any athlete who has the chance to play against Tottenham in a round of 16 and doesn't go to the limit is out of place."

Despite Spurs' injuries, Nagelsmann says they are "still a good team with a lot of good players".

"They counter well and have a clear game plan. It is important that we do it the same way as in the first leg in London," he said.

"But we are not thinking about the last games, but the upcoming match."

Werner should be fit to start after he was injured in Saturday's 0-0 draw with Wolfsburg.

MATCH FACTS

    Tottenham are the first English side to visit RB Leipzig in a competitive match. Spurs have only lost one of their five away Champions League games in Germany (W2 D2), although that defeat came this season at Bayern Munich in the group stage. They have been eliminated from eight of their last 10 major Uefa European knockout ties after losing the first leg, although they overturned a deficit the last time this happened against Ajax in last season's Champions League semi-final. Four of RB Leipzig's past five Champions League goals have been penalties, including each of the past three. Only one team has ever scored more than four penalties in a single Champions League campaign - Barcelona in 2011-12 (five). All three of Spurs' Champions League defeats this season have been against German teams (two against Bayern Munich, one against RB Leipzig). Only one team has ever lost more than three in a single campaign all against teams of the same nation, with Leeds United falling to all five of their defeats in 2000-01 against Spanish opponents. RB Leipzig striker Timo Werner is yet to find the net in six home Champions League appearances, attempting 22 shots without success. In away games Werner has scored seven goals from 14 shots. He has scored more Champions League goals without scoring at home than any other player in the competition's history. Leipzig manager Julian Nagelsmann, 32, is the youngest manager to take charge of a Champions League knockout match. The youngest to progress from a knockout tie is Didier Deschamps, then 35, in 2003-04 with Monaco.

Source: bbc.com

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