Hoffenheim vs Tottenham – LIVE!

Tottenham are back in Europa League action tonight with a trip to German outfit Hoffenheim. Spurs are in dire need to a result following a poor run of form, which has placed manager Ange Postecoglou under huge pressure. Well below midtable in the Premier League, the cup competitions are surely all the remain for the Spurs boss.

A selection crisis has not helped. Postecoglou is without over 10 first-team players and Spurs recently lost Pape Sarr to an injury, further complicating matters. While Spurs remain on course to reach the round of 16, little about them has convinced and a lack of available players is a big concern.

While another defeat would not throw Spurs out of European competition, it would make a top eight finish almost impossible to imagine, adding yet another game to their busy schedule. Follow all the action LIVE with Standard Sport’s dedicated match blog!

Hoffenheim vs Tottenham latest news

• Son brace seals crucial win for shaky Tottenham in Europa League

Son brace seals crucial win for shaky Tottenham in Europa League

19:42 , Jonathan Gorrie

A brace from captain Heung-min Son sealed a crucial win for Tottenham away at Hoffenheim in the Europa League.

Read the full story here!

FT: Hoffenheim 2-3 Tottenham

19:39 , Jonathan Gorrie

FT: Spurs just about hang on! A crucial three points, even in shaky circumstances.

Hoffenheim 2-3 Tottenham

19:32 , Jonathan Gorrie

90 mins: FIVE MINUTES ADDED ON!

GOAL! Hoffenheim 2-3 Tottenham | David Mokwa '88

19:31 , Jonathan Gorrie

88 mins: GOAL!

David Mokwa nods in at the back post to set-up a nervy finish!

Standard Sport's Dan Kilpatrick

19:22 , Jonathan Gorrie

Spurs really needed that. They have looked shattered in the second half but you can't leave a player of Son's quality with that much space too often. That should be enough for Spurs who are close to taking a giant step towards the knockouts.

GOAL! Hoffenheim 1-3 Tottenham | Heung-min Son '76

19:20 , Jonathan Gorrie

76 mins: GOAL!

And how badly Spurs needed it! Brilliant finish from Son, who shoots across the keeper from a tight angle.

Standard Sport's Dan Kilpatrick

19:13 , Jonathan Gorrie

It is a brilliant counter from Hoffenheim and it has very much been coming. Spurs cannot hold up the ball to relieve the pressure. Perhaps young Will Lankshear would make a positive difference up top.

GOAL! Hoffenheim 1-2 Tottenham | Anton Stach '68

19:11 , Jonathan Gorrie

68 mins: GOAL!

The hosts have one back! Stach taps in after a counter.

Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

19:07 , Jonathan Gorrie

64 mins: NO PENALTY!

Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

19:07 , Jonathan Gorrie

63 mins: Oh well, Kramaric was gearing up to take it, the referee goes across to the monitor.

Austin had been judged to have fouled Moerstedt when competing for a loose ball.

Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

19:05 , Jonathan Gorrie

61 mins: PENALTY TO HOFFENEHEIM!

Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

19:02 , Jonathan Gorrie

59 mins: Austin forced into a scrambling save after Bischof tries to chip him.

Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

18:58 , Jonathan Gorrie

56 mins: Mikey Moore on to replace Richarlison.

Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

18:57 , Jonathan Gorrie

54 mins: OFF THE BAR!

Kramarcic’s header hits the upright! Warning sign for Spurs...

Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

18:56 , Jonathan Gorrie

53 mins: Spurs just cannot keep a hold of the ball and are duly inviting a lot of pressure onto their defenders.

Hoffenheim growing in confidence.

Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

18:52 , Jonathan Gorrie

48 mins: Kramaric wants a penalty after going down under the challenge of Bergvall, but nothing given.

Spurs cannot keep the ball in the early stages of the second-half.

Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

18:47 , Jonathan Gorrie

Back underway!

Standard Sport's Dan Kilpatrick

18:34 , Jonathan Gorrie

HT, 0-2: It should be 3-0 but it could easily be 2-2, so a typical Spurs game in many respects. Ange Postecoglou will be pleased, though, and if Spurs can get another one quickly, they should be able to rest a couple of key players for the final half-hour.

HT: Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

18:33 , Jonathan Gorrie

45 mins: Maddison and Son with the goals to send Spurs into the break with big advantage.

Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

18:29 , Jonathan Gorrie

43 mins: Another for Spurs here would surely kill the game, albeit the hosts have shown flashes in an attacking sense of late.

Standard Sport's Dan Kilpatrick

18:20 , Jonathan Gorrie

Bearing in mind the quality of the opposition, Bentancur has been excellent on his return to the side. Spurs have really missed the Uruguayan's calmness and ability to break up play.

Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

18:20 , Jonathan Gorrie

33 mins: Big save from Austin to deny Bischof. Gets down well to his right from relatively close range.

Standard Sport's Dan Kilpatrick

18:12 , Jonathan Gorrie

Maddison was terrific for the second goal, showing a great desire to get on the ball and a presence of mind to cut back and release Son. There was a huge element of fortune in the finish but it is no less than Spurs deserve for their dominance so far.

GOAL! Hoffenheim 0-2 Tottenham

18:09 , Jonathan Gorrie

21 mins: GOAL!

And Spurs have their second! They break and Son’s shot is deflected into the Hoffenheim net!

Hoffenheim 0-1 Tottenham

18:02 , Jonathan Gorrie

15 mins: Son blazes a presentable chance over!

Spurs could really be 3-0 up here.

Hoffenheim 0-1 Tottenham

17:59 , Jonathan Gorrie

12 mins: Porro shoots just wide after taking a brilliant touch to tee up an effort after a lovely ball from Son.

Hoffenheim 0-1 Tottenham

17:56 , Jonathan Gorrie

09 mins: Maddison is purring here. Everything good about Spurs is going through him.

Hoffenheim 0-1 Tottenham

17:54 , Jonathan Gorrie

07 mins: Good block from Dragusin to deny Bischof. The hosts growing into the game now.

Standard Sport's Dan Kilpatrick

17:53 , Jonathan Gorrie

The perfect start for Spurs and a fine goal, crafted by Porro and finished by Maddison. Establishing a solid lead in Germany is key to Spurs potentially bringing on some youngsters in the second half and sparing some key legs ahead of Leicester on Sunday.

GOAL! Hoffenheim 0-1 Tottenham | James Maddison '3

17:49 , Jonathan Gorrie

03 mins: GOAL!

What a start! Brilliant ball from Pedro Porro finds James Maddison.

The midfielder takes it down with a fine touch before finishing into the roof of the net!

Hoffenheim vs Tottenham

17:46 , Jonathan Gorrie

KICK-OFF!

Hoffenheim vs Tottenham

17:27 , Jonathan Gorrie

The warm-ups are underway!

Standard Sport's Dan Kilpatrick

17:08 , Jonathan Gorrie

A first start for Richarlison since August and a welcome return for Rodrigo Bentancur are the headlines from the Spurs XI. There’s no surprises in Ange Postecoglou’s side given the scale of the club’s injury problems.

Mikey Moore is the most experienced outfield on the bench…and he’s 17. Confirmation, too, that Brandon Austin has moved ahead of Fraser Forster as the club’s homegrown goalkeeping choice.

Hoffenheim vs Tottenham

16:48 , Jonathan Gorrie

Three changes from Sunday’s defeat for Spurs, with Austin in for Kinsky and Richarlison in from the off.

A very young bench underlines the scale of the injury crisis at hand...

Confirmed Tottenham lineup

16:45 , Jonathan Gorrie

Tottenham XI: Austin; Porro, Dragusin, Davies, Gray; Bergvall, Bentancur, Maddison; Kulusevski, Richarlison, Son

Subs: Forster, Whiteman, Hardy, Cassanova, Olusesi, Moore, Lankshear

Confirmed Hoffenheim lineup

16:44 , Jonathan Gorrie

Hoffenheim XI: Baumann; Kaderabek, Akpoguma, Nsoki, Jurasek; Stach, Becker; Hlozek, Bischof; Kramaric, Moerstedt

Subs: Philipp, Hranac, Gendrey, Micheler, Kalambayi, Chaves, Behrens, Mokwa, Erlein, Duric

Pedro Porro defends Tottenham transfer policy with three success stories

16:21 , Jonathan Gorrie

Pedro Porro believes the form of Archie Gray and Lucas Bergvall justifies Tottenham's transfer policy to invest in young stars.

Spurs have made a concerted effort in recent seasons to snap up the continent's most promising youngsters, having beaten Barcelona to the signing of Bergval and spent big on bringing in Gray in the last 12 months.

Read the full story here!

Hoffenheim vs Tottenham

16:08 , Jonathan Gorrie

A look inside tonight’s venue!

Ange Postecoglou admits Tottenham may not make any more new signings during January transfer window

15:55 , Jonathan Gorrie

Ange Postecoglou has acknowledged that Tottenham may not add to their stretched squad before the end of the month, despite the club's worsening injury crisis.

Postecoglou has repeatedly requested "help" for his depleted squad in the form of new signings this month, with the head coach set to be without no fewer than 10 players through injury for Thursday's Europa League tie against Hoffenheim, while four others are ineligible.

Read the full story here!

Archie Gray: Poor performances will never shake me, I'm grateful to play for Tottenham

15:39 , Jonathan Gorrie

Tottenham's Archie Gray insists he is not shaken by his difficult afternoon in Sunday's 3-2 defeat to Everton and revealed he spoke to his dad, former Premier League player Andy, for advice after the game.

The 18-year-old has largely been impressive since filling in at centre-back during Spurs' midwinter injury crisis but he struggled at Goodison Park, where he was turned by Dominic Calvert-Lewin for the hosts' opener and scored an own goal which made it 3-0 in first-half stoppage-time.

Read the full story here!

Why Tottenham must end doom cycle against Hoffenheim to earn Europa League reprieve

15:22 , Jonathan Gorrie

There have been several points already this winter when Tottenham's selection crisis appeared to have peaked but, on Thursday night, Ange Postecoglou's absentees will reach new heights, with no fewer than 14 players unavailable for the Europa League tie against Hoffenheim.

That is over half of the Australian's squad, leaving the head coach barely able to cobble together a coherent XI for a game which Spurs can scarcely afford to lose.

Read the full story here!

Europa League permutations: What Tottenham need to qualify for knockout stages

15:19 , Jonathan Gorrie

If Tottenham beat Hoffenheim: This would do Spurs the world of good and put them safely on course for an automatic last-16 spot.

If Tottenham draw with Hoffenheim: This would leave Spurs needing to beat Elfsborg next week, but even four points from two games may not be enough for a top-eight finish.

If Tottenham lose to Hoffenheim: A top-eight finish would almost certainly be out of reach, even with a victory over Elfsborg, but a two-legged play-off spot should be secured. Spurs are highly unlikely to finish 25th or lower and be knocked out of Europe entirely.

Hoffenheim vs Tottenham: Head to head (h2h) history and results

15:19 , Jonathan Gorrie

This is the first competitive meeting between the two teams.

Hoffenheim vs Tottenham: Europa League score prediction today

15:17 , Jonathan Gorrie

Two teams in miserable form meet in a game both need to win. Hoffenheim last time out finally won under their new boss, winning away at relegation-threatened Holstein Kiel, but like Spurs have largely been on the wrong end of results over the past weeks and months.

It will likely be a game with little quality, but those inside the PreZone Arena will take it tough for the Spurs, but it is the visitors who boast more talent and that should shine through.

Tottenham to win, 2-1.

Tottenham team news vs Hoffenheim today

15:16 , Jonathan Gorrie

Tottenham have barely 11 senior players available for tonight’s Europa League tie at Hoffenheim, with at least seven still sidelined and Antonin Kinsky, Djed Spence and Sergio Reguilon ineligible in the competition.

With January signing Kinsky unable to be registered until after the initial phase and Guglielmo Vicario injured, Postecoglou faces a choice between Brandon Austin and Fraser Forster in goal.

Radu Dragusin is available despite needing stitches during Sunday's defeat at Everton and could partner either Ben Davies or Archie Gray at centre-back, with the other playing left-back.

Rodrigo Bentancur is back in the squad after completing concussion protocols and should come into the side at the base of midfield, with Lucas Bergvall and James Maddison pushing for further starts in the twin No8 roles.

Pape Sarr has been ruled out with an injury.

Richarlison and Mikey Moore both impressed from the bench at Goodison Park and may be rewarded with starting places, with Postecoglou likely to want to rest one or both of Dejan Kulusevski and captain Heung-min Son.

Hoffenheim team news vs Tottenham today

15:16 , Jonathan Gorrie

Hoffenheim have an injury list to almost rival Spurs' with Ihlas Bebou, Marius Bulter, Ozan Kabak, Christopher Lenz, Grischa Promel, Diadie Samassekou and Umut Tohumcu all sidelined. Former Tottenham transfer target Gift Orban is ineligible for the game having only arrived from Lyon this month.

Hoffenheim vs Tottenham: TV channel and live stream for Europa League today

15:16 , Jonathan Gorrie

TV channel: Tonight's game will be shown live in the UK on TNT Sports 2, with coverage beginning at 5pm GMT. Kick-off at PreZero Arena is at 5.45pm.

Live stream: Fans can catch the contest live online via the Discovery+ app and website.

Live blog: You can follow all the action on matchday via Standard Sport’s live blog.

Welcome

14:53 , Jonathan Gorrie

Good afternoon and welcome to Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of Tottenham’s Europa League clash away at Hoffenheim this evening.

Kick-off from the PreZero Arena in Sinsheim is at 5.45pm GMT.