Tottenham is unsure when it will make its debut at its new stadium.tottenham
Tottenham must tell UEFA "within a fortnight" where it will play its home group games in the Champions League, making it "increasingly likely that they will all be staged at Wembley because of the delays in construction" of the team's new home, according to Gary Jacob of the LONDON TIMES. The club will not move into its new stadium until mid-October "at the earliest," owing to "issues with critical safety systems." However, Tottenham has to inform UEFA which venue will host its home fixtures before the draw for the Champions League group stage takes place on Aug. 30. Although the new stadium "could be ready in time for the second and third group games," which will be played between Oct. 23 and Dec. 12, UEFA "will demand certainty about the venue." Tottenham said on Tuesday that it "had yet to make a decision." UEFA would "potentially allow the club to use more than one venue in the group stage because of exceptional circumstances" but in general it has a preference for clubs to "play all games at the same venue" (LONDON TIMES, 8/15).
OFF THE LIST: In London, Jack Watson reported Tottenham's search for a solution to its delayed stadium "has taken another turn for the worse" as the Rugby Football Union confirmed Twickenham "will not be a potential solution" to Spurs' search for a venue. The club's fourth Premier League home game is against Man City on Oct. 28 and has been switched to a 4pm kickoff on Sunday, which means Wembley "would not be a potential venue" because of an NFL game "taking place at the national stadium." Man City "reportedly rejected an approach from Spurs to reverse the fixture and play the match at the Etihad as the away side" (INDEPENDENT, 8/15). In London, Jeremy Wilson reported the EPL does not want Tottenham to play additional matches away from Wembley or the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium before Christmas "to protect the competition’s fairness and balance." Man City would face three consecutive away games in April if the October match was switched to the Etihad Stadium, "but finding a new date would also provide considerable challenges" (TELEGRAPH, 8/14).
