Lokomotiv Plovdiv reject Tottenham request to move Europa League fixture to London

As reported by the Daily Star, Tottenham Hotspur have been handed a blow as UEFA Europa League second round qualifying opponents Lokomotiv Plovdiv have refused to move their fixture to London.

Tottenham have been drawn against the Bulgarian outfit for the qualifier, with the fixture scheduled to play out in Plovdiv on September 17.

Jose Mourinho and Tottenham face a packed schedule in September

However, given the packed schedule in front of us, the club had requested to move the game to London. As per UEFA rules, a change of venue would be approved if both clubs are in agreement. But, our opponents have rebuffed our request over the matter. (h/t Daily Star)

Not only that, Plovdiv owner Hristo Krucharski has taunted the club, saying that his team will be the ones going through to the next round. (h/t Daily Star)

“There was an offer from Tottenham to play there. But I told them quickly that we don’t play for money but for pleasure. The miracle is clear. That we will beat them. We will beat them. The question is by how much. We can defeat them! We’ve got 16,000 bottles to celebrate!”

As a result, Jose Mourinho’s men now face a six-hour round trip to Bulgaria sandwiched between the visit of Everton on Sunday September 13 in the Premier League opener and a trip to Southampton on the 20th.

Squad rotation will be important for Mourinho

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Should we win in Bulgaria against Lokomotiv Plovdiv, another difficult trip lies ahead as we face either Romania’s Botosani or Macedonian club Shkendija in the third qualifying round.

The fixture pile-up and all the travelling is likely to take a toll on the players. So, it is important that Mourinho makes use of the entire squad and rotates the players accordingly.