Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino has bemoaned the fact that Borussia Dortmund have had a longer rest than his side heading into their clash on Tuesday.
The two sides will meet in the second leg of their last-16 Champions League tie at Westfalenstadion this evening, with Spurs protecting a 3-0 lead from the first leg at Wembley.
Pochettino’s side are expected to progress to the quarterfinals of this year’s competition, but Dortmund have enjoyed an extra day to prepare for the latest encounter between the two clubs.
The Bundesliga giants lost 2-1 at Augsburg on Friday evening, while Spurs did not take on Arsenal in the Premier League until Saturday afternoon.
Dortmund also played 24 hours before Tottenham before the first leg and according to Pochettino, they have an unfair advantage over his side due to the Premier League’s demanding fixture list.
“I think we need help from the FA, we need help from the Premier League, I don’t know because I am not involved in the decisions,” the Argentine began, as per Sky Sports.
“I don’t know whether to blame the FA or to blame the Premier League or to blame Tottenham because we changed the day because we still not deliver our new stadium or the TV because they wanted us to play live on Saturday.
“Look what happened with Rennes in the Europa League. They cancelled their game at the weekend to help or provide Rennes to play against Arsenal.
“In Europe, the FAs are more sensitive to help the club to compete in the best way in Europe.
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“I would like to play in the same situation as your opponent. That is the most important, you have the same day to prepare for the game.
“I think that is not fair and it is a problem that in the future we need to change if we want to help the English clubs be stronger in the competition.”
Tottenham have endured a difficult last two weeks domestically, losing away at Burnley and Chelsea before being held to a 1-1 draw at home by arch-rivals Arsenal at the weekend.
Their Premier League title hopes have been effectively dashed by that dismal run, which has left them with only the European Cup still to play for in terms of silverware between now and May.
If Pochettino men can finish the job against Dortmund in Germany then they will fancy their chances of getting even further in this year’s competition, but much will depend on the depth of the Argentine’s squad.
Tottenham have suffered with injuries to key players over the last couple of months and as the fixture list becomes more and more demanding, they will need to have their strongest possible starting XI available.
