Europa League: Tottenham’s unbeaten run ends in thrilling 2-3 loss to Galatasaray
Tottenham Hotspur’s flawless start in the Europa League came to an end on Thursday, as they fell 3-2 to a resilient Galatasaray side.
Despite having a massive continental clash with Juventus on the horizon, Tottenham Hotspur Mauricio Pochettino took time out to make a statement for the recently-departed Fiorentina captain Davide Astori and his gesture, unsurprisingly, was lauded by footballing fans across the globe.
“It’s a massive tragedy. I had the possibility to meet him, he was a great person, great player, great professional. We are devastated about the situation and I send all of my energy to his family,” Pochettino told his pre-match press conference in London.
Astori, 31, passed away in his sleep on Saturday night/Sunday morning on the eve of a Serie A clash with Udinese in the team hotel.
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Initial reports claimed the centre-back, who spent his formative years at Italian giants AC Milan, had died of a heart attack but an official cause of death has not been declared. An investigation is underway to rule out any chances of foul-play.
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All of Sunday’s Serie A matches were cancelled in a show of respect as the footballing world reacted to the tragic news, with the likes of Gianluigi Buffon and Carlo Ancelotti leading the tributes to a man who was held in high regard by his peers.
Spurs take on Juventus in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League round-of-16 tie at Wembley Stadium with the tie evenly poised after the second leg in Turin ended in a 2-2 draw.
While Spurs have a slight edge due to the fact that they have two away goals in the bag, Juventus arrive in the English capital high on confidence and it’s too close to call who will emerge victorious at Wembley on Wednesday night.
Both sides have almost-complete squads, with Spurs missing defenders Serge Aurier and Toby Alderweireld while Juventus will have to make do without the services of Mario Mandzukic.
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