Tottenham face quick travel turnaround ahead of Man Utd clash

Tottenham will arrive back in the UK less than 48 hours before they kick off the new Premier League season against Manchester United

Spurs will travel back from Munich on Thursday afternoon after ending their short pre-season tour of Germany with a comfortable 2-0 victory over AC Milan in the Audi Cup, thanks to goals from midfielders Nacer Chadli and Tom Carroll.

Manager Mauricio Pochettino revealed on Tuesday evening that he wanted to bring his squad’s return flight forward by 24 hours and hoped club officials would be able to secure a flight back to London on Wednesday night. 

However, Spurs saw their request turned down and Pochettino and his squad will now spend only around 24 hours in London before flying to Manchester. 

Real Madrid – also in Munich for the tournament – were given permission by the German authorities to change their flying time slot and managed to travel back to Spain on Wednesday night.  

Spurs will train at Bayern Munich’s training ground, Sabener Strasse, on Thursday morning before flying back to England. 

Pochettino said: "We decided last night to stay here. It is fantastic for us to recover and to sleep well and after training go back to London. We will arrive on Saturday in our best condition."

Pochettino did attempt to restrict the effect of their tight schedule by resting a host of first-team players, including last season’s top scorer Harry Kane, who was an unused substitute in Spurs’ victory over Milan. 

Goalkeeper Hugo Lloris did, however, make his first appearance since suffering broken hand, playing the final 35 minutes.