Three key takeaways from Tottenham’s Champions League squad changes, including one worrying omission

Thomas Frank has named his Tottenham Hotspur squad for the Champions League knockout rounds, and he has made some interesting decisions.

Tottenham Hotspur are not causing much excitement in the Premier League, but European football is once again proving to be a very different story.

Spurs landed a top-four spot in the league phase of the Champions League, therefore bypassing the play-off round to secure a place in the round of 16.   

Thomas Frank already has one eye on his team’s next tie in the competition, and he has named his updated Tottenham squad for the remainder of the Champions League campaign.

Let’s take a look at the three biggest takeaways from the announcement:

Yves Bissouma’s Tottenham first-team return could be short-lived

It looked as though Yves Bissouma would never play for Spurs again earlier in the season. The midfield’s off-the-pitch antics have certainly hindered his career, and he has already faced disciplinary action twice in the space of half a year.

Despite this, Bissouma has made three appearances since returning from AFCON due to the overwhelming number of injuries affecting the Tottenham first-team squad.

However, the Malian has not been called up to Frank’s updated Champions League squad, which appears to indicate he is still heading towards a summer exit.

Mathys Tel could be important to Spurs

There were questions surrounding a loan move for Mathys Tel in January, with the 20-year-old constantly in and out of the first-team this season.

Despite this, he has not only been kept at the club, but could feature for Tottenham in the Champions League last 16.

This is big news for Tel, as he was initially left out of the league phase squad and was axed again to make way for the returning Dominic Solanke. With a lack of options on the left wing, the young Frenchman could have an important part to play as Spurs look to push on in Europe.

Dejan Kulusevski is not close to a Tottenham return

Everybody has known for a while that James Maddison is highly unlikely to play for Spurs this season, but there was more optimism surrounding Dejan Kulusevski.

Following the Champions League squad announcement, this is no longer the case. After all, if Kulusevski was close to making his comeback, why would he be omitted from the list?

This certainly suggests the Swede will continue to be unavailable for most of what remains of the season, which is a massive blow for Tottenham. Having a player who possesses his level of skill and innovation would certainly be useful right now.

READ MORE – Tottenham confirm Champions League knockout phase squad changes after Thomas Frank decisions