‘You can cry or you can fight’: Igor Tudor urges struggling Tottenham to rise to the challenge

LONDON – Tottenham Hotspur interim manager Igor Tudor on March 13 delivered a rallying cry to his struggling side, telling them they must fight as the club face the almost unthinkable prospect of relegation from the English Premier League.

Spurs were beaten 5-2 by Atletico Madrid in their Champions League last-16, first-leg tie on March 10 and are also out of the FA Cup and League Cup.

They were last relegated from the top flight in 1977, but are in real danger of the drop as they were 16th in the standings, just a point above Nottingham Forest and West Ham United, ahead of the weekend fixtures.

“It’s been tough, for sure. Not just because of the last game but also the period. It’s not an easy situation or moment. It’s a big challenge to change things,” Tudor told reporters ahead of the trip to Liverpool on March 15.

“Like everything in life, you can choose how you see the situation. You can cry or you can fight. You can be the victim or you can change something. This is the message I want to communicate to the players.

“The bottle is either half full or half empty. Here there is nothing full. There are a lot of empty things, but difficult moments don’t last... It will pass and I believe the players will take this as a challenge.”

Tottenham have not won a Premier League game since they beat Crystal Palace on Dec 28 and will be desperate for victory, but they are bound to find it tough going when they face league champions Liverpool at Anfield.

The Reds have lost only one of their last 31 home league games against Spurs (won 21, drawn nine) and are unbeaten in 14 (won 10, drawn four) since a 2-0 defeat in May 2011.

To make matters worse, Tottenham will be without midfielder Joao Palhinha and captain Cristian Romero, who both suffered concussion after a clash of heads in the loss to Atletico in Madrid.

“They are out. Micky (van de Ven) is also out (suspended). (Yves) Bissouma is out with a muscle (injury). Conor (Gallagher) has some fever, but probably will be in,” Tudor said.

“We have a lot of problems to make the first 11. This is how it is at this club... We start to build something and then something happens like a red card in the last game or three or four injuries.”

Goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky’s performance at Atletico stood out for all the wrong reasons, as the Czech made two costly errors and was substituted in the 17th minute. Usual first-choice goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario will be back in goal at Liverpool, Tudor confirmed.

Despite the 22-year-old’s mistakes, the Croat said that he would not hesitate to call on him again in future, adding: “He will play, for sure. The day after on the training pitch, he was very positive.

“It’s a very rare situation that’s happened probably for the first and last time in my life and the life of a lot of people. In his career, Kinsky will make other mistakes, but he has a strength and quality. He has a very good career in front of him.” REUTERS