Rejuvenated midfielder Tom Huddlestone has insisted that Spurs can finish a disappointing season in style and secure a place in the competition without having to play in the Intertoto Cup. He said: "It will be difficult to get into Europe but I don't see why we can't make it. The results are picking up and the performances are getting better.
"We've got a lot of big games coming up and we've got to try and get ourselves in the top half of the table" he added. Since Juande Ramos arrived at White Hart Lane the team has climbed to 11th in the Barclays Premier League but still remain 12 points behind Aston Villa who hold the last UEFA Cup spot in 6th position.
But is applying to enter the Intertoto Cup a desperate step backwards for the under-achieving side?
Martin Jol's tenure was eventually ended by his failure to secure Champions League football - a demand the board will insist Juande Ramos meets sooner rather than later. To miss out on a European competition completely though would surely put the Spaniard under huge pressure for instant results. Tottenham's size and fan base demands that the club is competing against the best the continent has to offer.
Perhaps an application to play in the Intertoto Cup is therefore a sensible step, a safety net, rather than the act of panic some of the press are suggesting.
Ramos has already won the UEFA Cup twice, consecutively, with Seville and his record to date demonstrates that he knows how to get the best out of his players when the occasion demands.
Of course Tottenham can still qualify through Europe or indeed by beating Chelsea in the Carling Cup Final, a game which Gustavo Poyet insists is a secondary thought for now. He said: "Slavia are top of their league and are a decent team technically. They are used to winning their games and we will need to put in a big effort.
"But we are going over there to win the game and if possible, seal the qualification."
Spurs will travel without key central defender Michael Dawson although club captain Ledley King has flown with the squad and could play his first game since the 5-1 defeat of Arsenal in the semi-final of the Carling Cup.
Kevin Prince-Boateng joins Dawson in missing out tomorrow after the midfielder picked up a hamstring injury during training. New signing Gilberto has a calf strain so is unable to make his debut for the club but one player who will be desperate to make his bow is young Czech striker Tomas Pekhart, a former Slavia player, whose impressive recent performances for the reserves have earned him a call up to the first team squad.