Spurs geared for Bucs Challenge
Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp admitted on his arrival on Monday that he knew very little about Tuesday’s opposition in the Vodacom Challenge, Orlando Pirates, and stressed the encounter would be a tough one.
Spurs play their second pre-season friendly match in SA against the treble winners Pirates at Mbombela Stadium on Tuesday, kick-off at 8:15pm.
This will be their fourth clash against the Buccaneers since 2003. The first match was played in Durban and ended in a 2-1 win for Pirates. Then the two met again in 2007 with Spurs winning both matches 2-1 and 3-0.
Redknapp said he was impressed by Chiefs, whom he watched through a media stream on the Spurs website, and said he expected a similar approach from Pirates.
"It's a great country to come to and the competition is good," said Harry. "The Kaizer Chiefs were good on Saturday. They were fit, quick and technically very good.
"Pirates did the treble last season, so they are a strong team and it will be another tough game. They will want to impress their new coach (Julio Cesar Leal) and will work hard. We have to match that otherwise it will be a difficult night for us."
Redknapp said midfielder Danny Rose and defender Kyle Walker – both on England duty in the European Under-21 Championship Finals only last month – will play, as will former SuperSport United defender Bongani Khumalo, while the manager also expected Chelsea transfer target Luka Modric to play some part.
"We have a big squad here and we want to give everyone a game," he added. "It will be a different team with the likes of Danny Rose and Kyle Walker back and they’ll play, Bongani will play and we've the likes of Luka, Rafa, Gareth Bale, Aaron Lennon, Jermain Defoe, we’ve lots of quality players here. It will be a mix of young and more experienced players."
Meanwhile, veteran United States keeper Brad Friedel said in an interview with SuperSport.com that results meant little in these pre-season matches and added it was crucial to build for the upcoming season and try as much as possible to avoid injuries.