Tottenham
Tottenham beat Shamrock Rovers 3-1 earlier in their Europa League campaign. REUTERS

Thursday, 3 November

UEFA Europa League

Rubin Kazan v Tottenham Hostpur

Tsentralnyi Stadion

Kick-off: 1700 BST

Live online/TV coverage: In the UK, ITV4 will broadcast live coverage of tonight's tie, with further details and match highlights available on the company's web site. Coverage is also available on BBC Radio 5 Live.

Preview: Tottenham Hotspur will be hoping to secure their place in the last 32 of the Europa League with a second consecutive victory over Rubin Kazan Thursday evening.

Harry Redknapp has missed the trip to Russia after undergoing routine heart surgery on Wednesday but the Spurs boss is expected to return for Sunday's clash with Fulham.

In Redknapp's absence, Kevin Bond and Joe Jordan will take charge for Thursday's 4,000 mile round-trip to Kazan as Spurs look to secure passage from Group A.

Tottenham remain unbeaten in Europe this season following a draw at PAOK Salonika and home wins over Shamrock Rovers and Rubin; and Bond has said nothing would delight their absent manager more than to extend their unbeaten record to eight matches.

"It would certainly lift his spirits if we were able to bring him home some points from the game," Bond told reporters.

"It would give him a big lift, for sure. A couple of wins for us would be the best tonic. We have had a really good time of things since the first two games of the season."

William Gallas and Steven Pienaar are both expected to make their first starts of the season after recovering from groin and calf injuries respectively.

Scott Parker, Sandro, Gareth Bale and Luka Modric have all been left in London as Spurs continue their mix-and-match policy in Europe.

Academy trainees Jack Bartham and Kevin Stewart have both been included in the match day squad, but Giovani Dos Santos is absent with a calf injury.

Vedran Corluka (foot), Niko Kranjcar (thigh), Danny Rose (ankle), Tom Huddlestone (ankle) and Michael Dawson (Achilles) remain side-lined but Jermaine Defoe and Sebastien Bassong have both travelled to Russia.