Gylfi Sigurdsson Soldado Tottenham
Tottenham's Gylfi Sigurdsson celebrates with Roberto Soldado after scoring against Norwich City in the English Premier League, September 14Reuters

Ideally Tottenham would have liked to have been playing their European football on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

However, a bit of Thursday football action is what they are going to get after narrowly missing out on a Champions League place last season, with Spurs beginning their Europa League group stage campaign by hosting Norwegian side Tromso.

Having made quite a few waves in the transfer market in the summer, Andre Villas-Boas certainly has a sizeable squad at his disposal to be able to juggle Europe and the English Premier League.

Last season, Tottenham crashed out in the quarterfinals to FC Basel and the fans of the north London club will feel a little let down if they cannot better that performance this time around.

There is of course no Gareth Bale in the side anymore, but Tottenham do have a few exciting young talent on display, having bought the likes of Christian Erkisen and Erik Lamela in the summer.

Villas-Boas is expecting big things from the latter - Spurs' record signing from Roma - and hinted the Argentine could be included in the starting lineup for the first time.

"His qualities are immense, they are not in doubt, but we just didn't have enough time with him (for Sunday's Premier League game) due to his late arrival in the transfer window and the international game he played," Villas-Boas said.

"It was finally good for us to have a few days training with the team and there is a possibility (he could start against Tromso). He is selected for the game and a player of his quality will threaten to be in the team very soon.

"He has played in different positions up front from a young age. When he left River Plate, first he played behind the striker, then on the left, then as a right winger. The experience he has in three positions means he is creative in all three positions."

A player who has caught the eye this season has been someone who was already a part of the Spurs setup. Villas-Boas admitted to being a little surprised at the form shown by Andros Townsend so far this season.

"He came very motivated to do well after his loan," Villas-Boas added. "He was jumping for an opportunity. That opportunity arose due to Lennon's injury and he took it. Sometimes a player on the fringe of the first eleven doesn't do enough to break into the team, but he has taken the opportunity.

"He is very explosive in his game, through changes of pace and his dribbling ability. He is difficult to control with his change of pace. He has developed a lot in the last year, on loan at QPR and with us. Hopefully he can develop into a top player."

Team News: Villas-Boas confirmed Aaron Lennon and Nacer Chadli will miss the Tromso match, while Etienne Capoue is still recovering from the ankle injury picked up in the North London Derby loss to Arsenal.

Tromso, making their first appearance in the Europa League group stage, have no fresh injury concerns.

Where to watch

The game is scheduled for a kickoff on Friday morning (12.30 p.m) with the match set for a Live telecast on Ten Action.

Expected lineups: Tottenham: Friedel; Naughton, Kaboul, Chriches, Rose; Sandro, Paulinho, Townsend; Sigurdsson, Defoe, Lamela.

Tromso: Sahlman; Fojut, Koppinen, Norbye, Ciss; Bendiksen, Drage, Andersen, Johansen; Moldskred, Ondrasek.

Prediction: 3-0 to Tottenham