A bit more time enjoying Hoffenheim’s hospitality and all of Tottenham’s problems probably would have faded away. After all Christian Ilzer’s clumsy side certainly seemed intent on doing everything in their power to ease Spurs back to good health here, defending so meekly that it would be wise not to conclude that Ange Postecoglou is out of the woods yet.

What to make of a topsy-turvy 3-2 victory over the team sitting fourth from bottom in the Bundesliga? The positive for an injury-hit Spurs is that they were stylish at first, cruising into a 2-0 lead with goals from the outstanding duo of James Maddison and Son Heung-min. They also saw off a fightback from Hoffenheim after half-time, Son securing the points, and were resilient enough to boost their chances of avoiding the hassle of a two-legged playoff for a place in the Europa League knockouts by surviving a nervy finale with five teenagers on at the end.

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1 min: Peeeep! Spurs get the game going.

Right then, all the preambles have been ambled and there’s nothing but a quick team huddle between us and kick-off.

• Manchester City second in list with £708m earnings
• Top 20 revenue-generating clubs made £9.46bn last year

Real Madrid became the first football club to surpass €1bn (£844m) in revenue in a season when they substantially increased their financial firepower over their major European rivals.

According to the latest Deloitte Football Money League report, Madrid made €1.046bn (£883m) in the 2023-24 season, fuelled by match-day revenue doubling to €248m after the completion of renovations to the Bernabéu and a 19% increase in commercial revenue. They ended the campaign as winners of the Champions League, La Liga and the Spanish Super Cup.