Qarabag v Tottenham

Posted Wednesday, November 25, 2015 by Foxsports.com

Tottenham will look to secure their passage into the next round of the Europa League against Qarabag when they travel to Azerbaijan on Thursday.

Qarabag v Tottenham

Spurs in the middle of a fine run of form and have not lost in their last five games in all competitions.

The already positive atmosphere in north London was reinforced with an emphatic 4-1 win over West Ham at the weekend, stretching their unbeaten run in the league to 12 outings.

In the reverse fixture at White Hart Lane in September, Tottenham had to recover from a goal behind to earn a 3-1 victory and Qarabag will take heart from giving their English counterparts a scare at home.

Of arguably bigger concern for manager Mauricio Pochettino is the club's crucial Premier League match against a resurgent Chelsea on Sunday and it will be interesting to see if he decides to rest any of his first team regulars on Thursday night.

Qarabag go into the game in great form themselves. The defending Azerbaijani champions already look set to claim their third title in a row having built up a nine-point gap to second-placed Inter Baki after just 13 games of the new season.

The Horsemen have also been impressive in the Europa League so far, beating Anderlecht at home before claiming a credible draw against Monaco and could go level on points with Spurs if they beat them.

Samuel Armentos is expected to start upfront for Qarabag, with Brazilian playmaker Richard Almeida pulling the strings behind him.

Nabil Bentaleb and Nacer Chadli will both miss the game with ankle injuries, while Andros Townsend and Clinton N'Jie could be handed rare starts if Pochettino wants to keep his first team fresh for the match against Chelsea.