Thomas Frank to make big Tottenham calls as Champions League squad registration deadline looms | OneFootball

Spurs must submit their final list tonight

Your matchday briefing on Tottenham, featuring team news and expert analysis from Matt Verri

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Thomas Frank has big decisions to make as Tottenham prepare for a return to the Champions League.

A home match against Villarreal kicks things off, before Spurs travel to take on Bodo/Glimt and Monaco.

Copenhagen visit north London, with the focus then shifting to the blockbuster fixture of the league phase for Spurs, away at PSG on November 26.

After that, Frank’s side host Slavia Prague and Borussia Dortmund and then round things off with a trip to Eintracht Frankfurt.

Clubs must submit their List A squads by 11pm BST on Tuesday, September 2, meaning Spurs have just a few hours left to make some crucial calls.

Who can be on List A?

Clubs can name a maximum of 25 players on their A-List, with at least two of those having to be goalkeepers. Significantly for Spurs, eight of those 25 spots must got to locally-trained players.

That applies to those who are club-trained, meaning they have been registered to a club for three entire seasons or 36 months between the ages of 15 and 21.

Clubs can also fill that quota with association-trained players. That refers to those who registered to another club in the same association for three entire seasons or 36 months between the ages of 15 and 21.

Of the eight spots for locally-trained players, only four can be filled by association-trained players. If a club has fewer than eight locally-trained players, their maximum squad size is reduced from 25.

What is List B?

The B-List is named ahead of each fixture and so presents no immediate rush for Spurs. There is no limit on the number of players who can be included on this.

UEFA rules state: “A player may be registered on List B if he is born on or after 1 January 2004 and has, since his 15th birthday, been eligible to play for the club concerned for any uninterrupted period of two years, or a total of three consecutive years with a maximum of one loan period to a club from the same association for a period not longer than one year.

“Players aged 16 may be submitted if they have been registered with the club for the previous two years without interruption.”

Why are the rules a problem for Spurs?

Put simply, Spurs do not have enough club-trained players in their squad and have too many who fall into the association-trained category.

Goalkeeper Brandon Austin is the only club-trained player in the first-team squad, meaning Spurs will fill just one of the four necessary places under that requirement. As a result, their maximum squad size is set to be reduced from 25 to 22.

Spurs can name four association-trained players in their squad, but they have six who could fill those places. Dominic Solanke, Ben Davies, James Maddison, Brennan Johnson, Djed Spence and Archie Gray all qualify.

New signings: Randal Kolo Muani and Xavi Simons

London Standard

There are 17 spots to be filled in the squad for players who are not locally-trained, but the signings of Xavi Simons and Randal Kolo Muani now leave Spurs with 21 to choose from.

Frank therefore will have to leave first-team players out while naming a squad that is smaller than other teams in the competition will have.

Who could miss out for Spurs?

That is the big question. Six first-team players are going to have be overlooked.

Yves Bissouma is unlikely to be in the squad, with it still possible that he leaves the club before the Turkish transfer window shuts on September 12.

James Maddison will almost certainly not be included either, having suffered an ACL injury that will keep him out for most of the season.

There are decisions to be made over the fitness of Dejan Kulusevski and Radu Dragusin. Kulusevski will potentially not be named in the squad, with the Swede expected to be out until at least December, while Radu Dragusin is believed to be a couple of months away from returning to first-team action.

Big call: Dejan Kulusevski

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Kota Takai is also currently injured and has not played since joining in the summer. However, with limited centre-back depth, Spurs could have to pick either Takai or Dragusin to have them available for the latter stages of the league phase.

If Dominic Solanke’s ankle injury is not serious, then Frank could opt to trim his attacking options. One of Wilson Odobert or Mathys Tel would likely then miss out.

Antonin Kinsky is also at risk of not being included, while Ben Davies and Archie Gray are the most likely candidates to miss out on the association-trained list.