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“I would be happy if José Mourinho was not satisfied in the end,” LASK coach Dominik Thalhammer said of the goal in today’s second game. Arithmetic games are not used that would be sufficient to advance. “We decided not to think about these scenarios. Our job is to take on a great challenge. We will not bow down to Tottenham and freeze in amazement.”
That was the case with 3-0 in London in the first half. “Tottenham also make mistakes,” Thalhammer said, but exploiting them was difficult. “If we play in the Bundesliga and win the ball, the passing windows open longer.”
Even today Mourinho will manage without some stars. That changes little in the degree of difficulty of the task. Thalhammer: “Tottenham don’t have a B-team. We need an excellent performance, no matter which team Tottenham comes with.”
The LASK coach was unable to exchange many words with Mourinho when they met in London. “He was very nice before and after the game. I’ve been following him on Instagram ever since,” he said. “Did you follow him?” James Holland asked. Thalhammer’s reply with a wink: “No, but we can discuss that this time.”
See image gallery
Photo gallery: Tottenham Hotspur landed in Linz
PHOTO: VOLKER WEIHBOLD
The opportunity to advance
There is only a realistic chance of promotion if LASK scores more points against Tottenham than Antwerp at home against Rasgrad at the same time. Then LASK needs Tottenham’s help in the last round with a win against the Belgians: if LASK wins in Razgrad at the same time, the athletes would advance to the sixteenth final.
In case of a tie, the direct duel decides the ranking. Against Antwerp, LASK will definitely be demoted. If multiple teams are tied at the end, an internal table of these clubs is used for placements. Theoretically, it is possible that Tottenham, Antwerp and LASK finish the group with twelve points, then the athletes would still be eliminated in third place. As it stands, Tottenham and Antwerp have a goal difference of +2, LASK have -4.
