Jol retains European ambition for Tottenham

Tottenham's players seem to like Martin Jol. The head coach seems to have the knack of saying the right thing to give them confidence and make them feel happy - with the exception of those who are left on the bench all game, perhaps.

He gave the club a lift after replacing Jacques Santini in charge, but things have slipped again, and a top-10 finish is beginning to look like the best Spurs can hope for. Nonsense, says Jol, a place in European competition is still possible

The chance to push for seventh place and - if Manchester United and Arsenal reach the FA Cup final - next season's Uefa Cup may stand or fall on the outcome of Tottenham's contest with Newcastle today. But injuries, a blight that has assumed the same sense of tradition as the urge to put style first and winning second, have struck hard at a vital moment.

For Jol, European qualification would be a key achievement in the club's development. "It is very important for this team to win things," he said. "Maybe Nourredine Naybet has won things, but no other players have. We are on the fringe of doing well. The reason we play here is that we are a big club who want to do well.

"I think we have a big chance. We have four home games left. Our three away games, at Liverpool, Arsenal and Middlesbrough, are difficult, which is why I am disappointed we didn't get the three points at Birmingham last week. But we are good at home. We haven't lost at home in eight games, and we know when we have a good team we can play anyone."

But Naybet is one of the doubts for today's game. He has a hamstring injury, while Anthony Gardner, his potential stand-in alongside Ledley King, has a problem with his foot injury. Michael Dawson, who has yet to play since his move from Nottingham Forest because of a shin problem, and Goran Bunjevcevic are on standby.

Both full-backs are out, too. Timothée Atouba is suspended for elbowing Manchester City's Joey Barton, and Noé Pamarot is injured. Add to that, the midfielder Pedro Mendes is out for the rest of the season with a broken toe, and both the right-sided Simon Davies and the left-sided Reto Ziegler are struggling to be fit.

Newcastle started this season in the Champions' League, and after a tumultuous week, in which Lee Bowyer was fined £210,000 for fighting with team-mate Kieron Dyer, they moved a step closer to the Uefa Cup semi-finals with a 1-0 victory over Sporting Lisbon. Bowyer and Dyer are suspended for tomorrow's game, but Jol suspects that the turmoil will have strengthened Newcastle's resolve.

"Newcastle seem to have a good spirit, and sometimes you need a bit of tension to get better as a team," Jol said. "I don't think we have an advantage because they played on Thursday. They have three days to recover and they are a quality team. But we play at home, and that is an advantage. We beat them at St James' Park in the first game of the season and were better that them in the FA Cup [when Spurs lost]. We are also above them in the League."