Tottenham v Fulham: Felix Magath hopes Lewis Holtby can be his inside man in bid to take down Spurs and avoid relegation

Magath admits he asked John Heitinga about Everton and has looked to Holtby to give him information on his parent club

Duncan Bech
Thursday 17 April 2014 11:10 EDT
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Tottenham midfielder Lewis Holtby, on loan with Fulham, is hoping the Cottagers beat his parent club in order to avoid relegation
Tottenham midfielder Lewis Holtby, on loan with Fulham, is hoping the Cottagers beat his parent club in order to avoid relegation (Getty Images)

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Fulham boss Felix Magath has been consulting Lewis Holtby for advice on Tottenham ahead of Saturday's Barclays Premier League clash at White Hart Lane.

Magath sees no problem in securing inside information on opponents and refuses to criticise Crystal Palace for allegedly trying to obtain Cardiff's starting line-up before their match on April 5.

The German rejects calls to have the game replayed and revealed he has been speaking to Holtby, who is ruled out of Saturday due to the terms of his loan agreement from Spurs, over what to expect.

"I always ask the players - John Heitinga against Everton and now Lewis against Tottenham," he said.

"Sure I ask Lewis how he sees the situation, how a certain player is, but it is not the only one kind of information I will get. I try to get all the information I can get.

"You try to get any information you can get. I'll try also to get any information from Tottenham for Saturday.

"It is always a problem if you are not careful with information. Maybe it happens some time.

"I think Tottenham will also try to get information from us, you can not blame anyone for trying to get information. If you are lucky you can, so it is good."

Successive victories over Aston Villa and Norwich have nudged Fulham closer to Premier League survival, placing them just two points adrift of safety with four games remaining.

Magath arrived at Craven Cottage on February 14 and while it has been a fraught two months, he is thriving under the pressure.

"I find that stress is a good thing," Magath said.

"I think we have very important games at the moment and if it works like the last two it will be okay.

"Everybody has a chance and we can go to Tottenham and try to win.

"It is not the time for celebrating because our aim is to stay in the league.

"Everyone knows our situation and every game is important - we need the next three points to stay in the league. We are used to it and I think we can manage it.

"At the end of the season anything can happen and you have to prepare for every situation.

"Some teams do very well because there is no pressure, others do not do so well."

PA

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