Spurs cautious despite ideal draw

Tottenham are taking nothing for granted after being handed the easiest possible route to the Champions League proper. Spurs' first European Cup match for almost half a century will be against Swiss side Young Boys following today's play-off round draw in Nyon.The two-leg tie was a dream pairing for Harry Redknapp's side, who avoided much trickier clashes with the likes of Dynamo Kiev, Sampdoria, Auxerre and Braga.But club secretary Darren Eales insisted reaching the competition's lucrative group stage was not a foregone conclusion, with Young Boys having stunned Fenerbahce in the previous round.Speaking on Sky Sports News from Nyon, Eales said: "I don't think there was a perfect draw."All five teams that have got through are obviously quality sides."He added of Young Boys: "We saw them play against Fenerbahce - that was a great result for them to win 1-0 in Turkey."So we know it's going to be a tough game but we're excited about it and looking forward to hopefully getting into the Champions League group stages."Eales did admit he was happy to have avoided Dynamo, saying: "With Dynamo Kiev, there's the travel aspect."In that respect, we're going to Switzerland; it's not so far to travel. That's obviously a positive."I think the other thing that we'll be pleased about is that we're playing at home second leg - that's always an advantage."Indeed, the first leg will take place in Berne on Tuesday, August 17, with the return in London the following Wednesday.Describing the current mood around White Hart Lane, Eales said: "I just joined the club on July 1 and you can imagine the excitement and the buzz around the place."We've got a real chance to get into the group stages, a chance for our fans to experience football, perhaps against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu, or Barcelona or the Milans."We're keeping our feet on the ground but, obviously, we're really hoping that we can get through."Eales revealed reaching the group stage was unlikely to result in a larger transfer kitty for Redknapp and refused to comment on speculation linking several big names with moves to Spurs.He added: "We'll be doing our best to get some transfer activity but we'll just have to wait and see."Tottenham's last foray in Europe's premier club competition came in the 1961-62 season.Last term saw them finally fulfil their ambition of breaking into the Barclays Premier League top four, thereby securing a coveted Champions League spot.Spurs have never played Swiss runners-up Young Boys, who are well into their domestic season, which kicked off on July 17, although they have failed to win any of their opening three games.Their squad includes an Enfield-born Spurs fan in Scott Sutter, who moved to Switzerland aged 16.Tottenham's only previous European meeting with Swiss opposition ended in a 9-1 aggregate win over Grasshoppers in the 1973-74 UEFA Cup.Young Boys sporting director Alain Baumann admitted his side had been handed the toughest possible draw."We are happy to play Tottenham," he said. "For Young Boys, it's a good draw but the hardest. For the spectacle, it's the best."We beat Fenerbahce but I think Tottenham are more difficult for us."We hope to have a little chance and this chance we will need to take.""Tottenham is a name in the world like Liverpool or Chelsea, so for us it's big, big game."

Source: Team_Talk