Tottenham Hotspur are notorious chokers. Since winning the League Cup in 2007/08, Spurs have repeatedly failed to inspire confidence on the big stage. Opposing fans have revelled in Tottenham’s inability to get the job done when the pressure is on.

Whether the north London side have been pushing for the Premier League title, competing for cup silverware or even fighting against England’s top six, Tottenham always seem to fall short.

Spurs fans are sick and tired of the ‘bottle job’ comments – Champions League glory will silence the haters.

And it would be foolish to write Spurs off ahead of Saturday’s contest. This season has certainly been something of an anomaly. Tottenham have been sublime in the Champions League, picking up results left, right and centre to keep their European dreams alive.

Mauricio Pochettino’s men have had their fair share of luck but even the best teams need luck to succeed. Tottenham well and truly deserve their spot in Saturday’s Champions League final – you won’t find many neutrals who would dispute that belief.

The north London side are priced at 8/5 in 888sport’s football betting odds to lift the trophy and punters will be tempted by those odds given Tottenham’s run in the competition. Spurs could be celebrating their greatest ever evening come 10pm on Saturday night.

Neutrals will claim that Tottenham’s name is on the trophy given their efforts this campaign. Some would even argue that they almost deserve success for getting past Borussia Dortmund, Manchester City and Ajax, conquerors of Real Madrid and Juventus in earlier knockout rounds.

Spurs fans have loved every minute of this European journey since Lucas Moura’s 85th minute equaliser away at Barcelona. That goal was the catalyst for what has happened in the last four months.

That result at the Camp Nou, doubled up with Inter Milan’s failure to defeat PSV Eindhoven, secured Tottenham’s spot in the last-16. However, nobody expected Pochettino’s men to go on and reach the European showpiece in Madrid.

Reports claim that Harry Kane should be good to go for Saturday night and that will give the travelling fans a boost. The 39/20 with 888sport for Kane to notch a Champions League final goal is a little short but he will be fired up and ready to go.

When Tottenham are good, they’re very good. In fact, some would argue that Spurs have the capacity to play a scintillating brand of football that rivals that of Manchester City and Liverpool.

Spurs will have to sink rather than swim in Madrid’s unforgiving Metropolitano Stadium. Pochettino has a few big decisions to make ahead of Saturday’s clash – Tottenham cannot afford to carry ANY passengers.

If that means Kane starts on the bench, so be it. This is the biggest game of the campaign and Spurs must be focused entirely on victory.

Which Tottenham will turn up in Madrid? If it is the Spurs side that went into self-destruct mode at Stamford Bridge when chasing the title in 2016, they can forget it.

Mindset is key for Tottenham ahead of this contest and nerves will play a major part. But if Pochettino and co get it right, Tottenham will be in business.

Liverpool are favoured in the Champions League odds but Spurs will relish being underdogs. Taking pressure off their shoulders should play right into Tottenham’s hands.

 

*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*

Alex is a sports betting tipster, specialising in Premier League football, the Champions League and horse racing.

He loves placing a weekly accumulator on the football at the weekend and dreams of landing the big winner that will take him back to Las Vegas.

As well as writing sports betting tips for 888sport since 2015, Alex has produced content for several international media companies, such as Goal.com and The SPORTBible.