DUBAI // Glenn Hoddle stuck his neck out on the first day of the English Premier League season with the declaration that his beloved Tottenham Hotspur held an outstanding chance of earning a Champions League place. "I was working for Sky Sports [television] at White Hart Lane when Spurs played Liverpool [a game they won 2-1] and I expressed the view that Spurs had the stronger depth to their squad," said Hoddle. "Once you take [Steven] Gerrard and [Fernando] Torres out of Liverpool's squad it looks a bit thin, unlike Spurs. I'm delighted to have been proved right."
Hoddle, who managed Tottenham for three years from 2001, heaped most of the praise for the club's breakthrough on Harry Redknapp, the manager. "Harry has carefully put his squad together and now because of the finances involved in the Champions League he has an outstanding opportunity to strengthen that squad. He has earned that by doing such a fantastic job at Spurs. "But it is crucial that they qualify for the group stages of the Champions League. They have got to get through the preliminaries to capitalise on what they achieved and that won't be easy judging by the quality of the clubs who are going to be in that qualifying round."
Ledley King, Tottenham's captain, 29, yesterday signed a new contract that commits him to the club until 2012. wjohnson@thenational.ae
