Tottenham make their Champions League return against Villarreal tonight.
Spurs have started the campaign on form and currently sit third in the Premier League after four matches.
But it is a new challenge for Thomas Frank, who will make his personal Champions League debut. His only previous managerial experience in Europe came in the form of a Super Cup defeat by Paris Saint-Germain in August and a pair of fruitless Europa League qualifying campaigns with Brondby.
Villarreal seem to be ever-present in Europe, but did not contest any UEFA competition last season. This trip to north London, then, will be their first appearance in the competition since being knocked out in the semi-finals by Liverpool in 2021-22.
Former Spurs player Juan Foyth will likely play for the Yellow Submarine, as will former Chelsea man Renato Veiga, the Spaniards’ new club-record signing.
Date, kick-off time and venue
Tottenham vs Villarreal is scheduled for an 8pm BST kick-off tonight on Tuesday September 16, 2025.
The match will take place at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in north London.
Where to watch Tottenham vs Villarreal
TV channel: Tonight’s match will not be broadcast live on terrestrial television.
Live stream: Tottenham vs Villarreal will instead be broadcast live on Amazon Prime.
It will be free for all Amazon Prime subscribers to watch. A subscription starts at £8.99 per month in the UK, though a 30-day free trial is also available. Coverage will start at 6.30pm.
Live blog: You can also follow every minute on matchday via Standard Sport’s live blog, with expert insight and analysis from Matt Verri at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Tottenham vs Villarreal team news
Frank is dealing with a considerable number of absentees. Dominic Solanke continues to suffer from an ankle injury picked up in pre-season, but the rest of the issues are longer-term.
None of Yves Bissouma, Dejan Kulusevski, Radu Dragusin, James Maddison, or Kota Takai will be involved.
Randal Kolo Muani could be set to make his Spurs debut after signing on loan from Paris Saint-Germain on Deadline Day.
Speaking ahead of the match, Frank said Kolo Muani, an unused substitute against West Ham on Saturday, was “ready”.
Mathys Tel is unavailable having been left out of the squad for the competition.
There is a decision to make in midfield, though, as Frank must choose between Xavi Simons and Lucas Bergvall in the No10 role, where the latter excelled against West Ham.
The visitors will be without defender Willy Kambwala, centre-forward Gerard Moreno, and Pau Cabanes.
Tajon Buchanan is in line to start, though. He has notched three goals in four LaLiga matches this season, one shy of early golden boot contender Kylian Mbappe (4).
Tottenham vs Villarreal prediction
So far this season, we have seen two sides of Tottenham. We have seen the free-flowing, tactically astute Spurs who picked apart West Ham, downed Manchester City, and came within minutes of beating PSG in the Super Cup.
We have also seen the more turgid Tottenham that whimpered to a 1-0 home loss against Bournemouth.
So, the outcome of this match will likely be decided by which Tottenham turns up.
Given the scale of the occasion, the Spurs squad should have no issue getting themselves up for it.
Tottenham to win, 2-1.
Head to head (h2h) history and results
This will be the first competitive meeting between Tottenham and Villarreal.
Tottenham vs Villarreal match odds
Tottenham to win: 10/11
Villarreal to win: 3/1
Draw: 27/10
Odds via Betfair (subject to change).
