Eeven now, at this distance, the video retains all its shock value; black comedy blending harmoniously with jubilation. Tottenham lost 1-0 to Paços de Ferreira on August 19 in the first leg of the Europa Conference League play-offs and the Portuguese club were prompted to troll. Again.

After the draw, Paços had downloaded a clip of two of their fans discuss the meeting with a London giant. Which one was it? They ran through all possibilities, deliberately ignoring Spurs, until they were told it was indeed them. “Oh, those guys… we can easily beat Tottenham,” they say, before clinking their beer bottles together.

Now with the victory theirs has come this TikTok Video. It was not issued by the club this time, rather endorsed by them with a follow-up comment. It showed Paços’ mascot, a giant beaver, spinning suggestively behind his Spurs counterpart, a giant rooster, as a fan did the same to their right.

Needless to say, Spurs’ enemies in London and beyond loved it and it rather set the tone for the club’s participation in UEFA’s new third tier competition. Spurs would beat Paços 3-0 on the return to advance to the group stage, but they haven’t really been able to win so far, to avoid humiliation at best and at worst throw headlong into his grip . As they have done pretty much every time they have traveled far from home.

Since that famous game, Paços has won only once all season and, while Spurs’ 2-2 draw at Rennes was commendable enough, the occasion was memorable mainly for the sight of Harry Kane leading the ‘team – shortly after failing to secure the transfer he wanted Manchester City. It was a meme trigger. Wasn’t Kane supposed to play Champions League football?

Then there were the losses to Vitesse and NS Mura, the first after ex-manager Nuno Espírito Santo let his first 11 in London rest for the weekend’s Premier League game at West Ham; the latter at the hands of the Slovenian minnows – the lowest-ranked team in the group stage – was one of the most embarrassing nights in Spurs history and it sparked an angry reaction from Nuno’s successor , Antonio Conte, who said he now understands the extent of the challenge that awaits him.

Criticism from inside and outside the club has been a recurring theme. Midfielder Harry Winks has suggested Nuno’s selection at Vitesse has been divisive. “We’re supposed to be a team… everyone should be fighting for the weekend games and it’s tough,” he said. “The motivation should be that everyone is fighting for the same cause. “

And now Spurs find themselves under fire from Rennes and even from Vitesse for asking that Thursday night’s last group game at home against Rennes be postponed as they are reeling from a Covid epidemic, which forced them to close the first team area of ​​the training ground.

Rennes, who once dominated the section, raged at being forced to travel and then not play, muttering the impression that Spurs were still roughly above the UEFA threshold of being 13. senior players available (including a goalkeeper).

Meanwhile, Vitesse, tied on points with Spurs in the fight for second place and a place in a play-off to reach the bottom 16, are unhappy to have to play Thursday night at home against Mura while their rivals wait. . This is because the goal difference is likely to be the separating factor between the teams. Vitesse points out that Spurs sent a B team to face them. Why couldn’t they do it against Rennes?

To repeat, Spurs have been ravaged by a frightening illness, kicked out of their workplace, shaken by uncertainty and yet they continue to absorb the gunfire.

The club’s Conference League campaign has been a disaster from the start and yet it is not over. But for a whim of fate, they would already be featured at the exit in the probable event of Vitesse’s home win over Mura. Spurs’ away result against the Dutch club was a 1-0 defeat before beating them 3-2 at home, meaning they are tied on the initial tie-breaker in terms of points, goal difference and goals scored.

Previously, Vitesse’s more away goals in inter-club matches would have given them the advantage, but UEFA has abandoned this rule this season and they now switch to goal difference and then goals. scored in all group matches. If that doesn’t separate them, away goals in all matches would come into play (Speed ​​has more). Right now, however, Spurs’ overall goal difference is better than two.

And so, every time Spurs play the reorganized Rennes game, they stay in control to advance in the competition in which they did not want to participate; add up to nine more games in the second half of their season – at a time when Conte intends to aim for a top-four spot in the league.

No matter the oddly baffling cycle from Thursday to Sunday, what value would there be in winning the Conference League? For many onlookers, it is written in the stars that Spurs will reach the final and face Roma, led by their former manager José Mourinho. Out of all the available evidence, they should be careful what they want.