Mauricio Pochettino has explained the reasoning behind his decision to hand Dele Alli his first start of the season against Olympiacos.
The Englishman was yet to start for Spurs in the Premier League this season, having missed the beginning of the campaign through injury.
Alli made his return against Arsenal before the international break, coming on as a second-half substitute, but was rested during Tottenham's 4-0 demolition of Crystal Palace.
But with such a tough fixture in midweek against Olympiacos, Pochettino was keen to have the 23-year-old playmaker at his best for the trip to Greece.
Tottenham have lost their opening group match in the Champions League in each of the last two seasons, prompting the Spurs boss to throw in Alli to try to avoid a third.
With Bayern Munich taking on Red Star Belgrade at the later time of 8pm, Tottenham's early kick-off offered them the perfect opportunity to stamp their mark on Group B.
Prior to kick-off, Pochettino was quizzed on whether he had been saving Alli for this specific test.
Speaking to BT Sport, he said: “We have a lot of very good, top players in the squad. We have a big squad and of course, everyone can fill the positions. It’s a good possibility for the players that are going to start like Dele Alli to show their quality.”
Alli lined up alongside Christian Eriksen, Harry Winks and Tanguy Ndombele in midfield.
Both Serge Aurier and Danny Rose were left in north London, with Ben Davies and Davinson Sanchez instead playing at full-back.
And Pochettino spoke of the challenge he expected from the Greek side, who have a formidable record at home.
"Of course it's tough, it's always difficult," he said.
"It's something we can enjoy away from home and we are ready to fight, we are ready to play, we are ready to enjoy these types of games."
