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LONDON — A Champions League last 16 tie with Leipzig offers Tottenham a window into what might have been when Julian Nagelsmann brings the buccaneering Germans to London on Wednesday looking to inflict another early exit from the competition on Jose Mourinho.

Nagelsmann, 32, is 25 years younger than Mourinho and has a CV 25 trophies lighter than the Portuguese, yet, many believe Spurs missed a trick in failing to pursue him as Mauricio Pochettino’s successor.

Pochettino’s time at Spurs never recovered from losing last season’s Champions League final. 

Had the clash against Liverpool in Madrid gone the other way, there is every chance the Argentine would have bowed out on top.

Instead, he lumbered on until November, when he was sacked, paving the way for Mourinho’s return to the Premier League.

Despite his relative lack of experience, Nagelsmann would have been a more natural heir to Pochettino if Spurs chairman Daniel Levy wanted to rekindle the high-pressing, attacking and proactive football of the glory days of Pochettino’s reign.

But Tottenham and plenty others were too slow off the mark when it came to getting their hands on one of Europe’s top coaching talents.

After three-and-a-half seasons transforming Hoffenheim from battling for Bundesliga survival to qualifying for the Champions League, Leipzig knew Nagelsmann was the man they wanted to fulfil Red Bull’s ambitious project to dethrone Bayern Munich as the kings of German football.

An agreement was in place well before Nagelsmann took charge at the start of this season.

“It’s like when you go to a disco and you are single, you’ll never find a girl,” Nagelsmann told The Independent of the interest that followed him signing a contract with Leipzig.

“Then when you go to the disco with your girlfriend, quite a few want you!”

Experience favours Spurs

The bold approach of a young coach and energy of a youthful squad have taken Leipzig to within a point of Bayern at the top of the Bundesliga and into the knockout stages of the Champions League for the first time.

However, experience is on Tottenham’s side. Not only do Spurs now have a two-time winner of the competition in the dugout, but a team that has progressed further in the Champions League every year for the past three seasons.

“Jose has experience in every sort of situation,” added Nagelsmann. “He has managed so many knockout games and knows what to do if his team goes ahead, is behind, concedes early, needs a late goal. I’ve only had knockout games in the DFB-Pokal [German Cup].”

Not all Mourinho’s experience in the Champions League is positive, though. 

The last time he lifted the trophy was a decade ago and he has not even progressed beyond the last 16 since 2014.

Defeats to Sevilla with Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain in his second spell at Chelsea were characterised by an overly cautious approach that has been Mourinho’s hallmark.

It is the reason Nagelsmann sees little similarities in their styles despite being labelled “baby Mourinho” during his time as a youth team coach at Hoffenheim for his attention to detail.

Mourinho has not been able to implement his usual degree of defensive discipline on Spurs in his opening four months.

Sunday’s 3-2 win at Aston Villa was the ninth time they have conceded more than once in his 20 games in charge.

Yet, the visits of Liverpool and Manchester City in recent weeks have seen him revert to type when faced with the toughest opposition.

Whether Leipzig are offered the same level of respect will say much about the standing Mourinho holds the Champions League upstarts and their highly-touted manager. 

MADRID — Atletico Madrid might once have relished the challenge of resisting an opponent like Liverpool, but reaching the Champions League’s quarter-finals will require a performance not yet seen from them this season.

Diego Simeone’s side are no longer the same Atletico famed for their inch-perfect defence, relentless work ethic and a knack for grinding down even the most assured, attacking teams. 

Instead, they are 12 points adrift of leaders Real Madrid in La Liga and last week sat sixth, a reflection of a deflating few months during which their old identity has blurred and their esteemed coach been questioned. 

When it was pointed out to Simeone on Friday that both of Valencia’s goals in their 2-2 draw at Mestalla had come from set-pieces, he said: “We don’t have the same characteristics now. Just like we attack differently, we also defend differently.” 

Out of the title race before March and knocked out of the Copa del Rey before the last 16, many in Spain believe Atletico’s season is in tatters, with the assumption they will soon depart the Champions League too.

The debate has inevitably turned to Simeone and whether he remains the man to better those high standards he himself has set. 

“In the eight years I’ve been here, every year it’s been said the squad isn’t with me,” Simeone said in December. 

“There is always a rocky patch but I have always had patience, energy and confidence in what I believe. We can win or lose but I am convinced of what I want because I know my players.” 

To prove the doubters wrong against Liverpool, Simeone will have to extract a throwback display from a new group of players and against the finest team in Europe, both in terms of current form and the last name written on the cup.

Sense of inferiority

Atletico might take heart from their record at home, where they must surely avoid defeat on Tuesday to keep the tie alive ahead of a daunting second leg at Anfield. 

They have lost only once in 21 Champions League games in front of their own fans, even if Liverpool will hardly feel uncomfortable at the Wanda Metropolitano, where they were celebrating last June after lifting their sixth European Cup. 

And a sense of inferiority might also appeal to Simeone, whose Atletico have often appeared to excel when the chance of victory seemed lowest. In recent years, they have prevailed against Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Juventus and Real Madrid. 

Yet, all logic points to a Liverpool victory, particularly given Atletico are likely to be without Diego Costa and Joao Felix, the 120 million Portugese forward who has so far struggled to live up to the hype.

Alvaro Morata’s fitness is also in doubt after he played only 24 minutes off the bench against Valencia. 

When Atletico thrashed Real Madrid 7-3 in pre-season, many wondered if they could repeat their remarkable title-winning feat of 2014, reinvigorated by new signings and fresh belief. 

But a promising start quickly fizzled and Simeone raised eyebrows in December by insisting this was always a “transition season” for his team, despite close to 250 million euros spent last summer. 

Those arrivals had big shoes to fill, after Antoine Griezmann left for Barcelona and the drain of leadership continued with the departures of Diego Godin, Lucas Hernandez, Filipe Luis and Juanfran.

Simeone said transition did not mean stagnation. “Anyone who believes the word transition means sunbathing and waiting for the flowers to come out doesn’t know me,” he said. 

Yet, while he may never be under pressure at the club he has transformed since his appointment in 2011, Simeone is in need of a boost as he attempts to put Atletico back among the elite. 

Liverpool may remind them how far they have to go. 

AMMAN — Jordan is pulling out all the stops to host a successful Asian/Oceanian Tokyo 2020 Boxing qualifying event from March 3-11, after being the eleventh hour replacement for the Chinese city of Wuhan, which is the epicentre for the coronavirus, according to the Jordan Olympic Committee News Service.

Extensive work is being done to upgrade Prince Hamzeh Hall in Al Hussein Youth City as the host venue, with the Local Organising Committee also upgrading Rashed Al Zyoud Arena which will be the training venue.

Venue manager, Rahaf Oweis, said that a tremendous team effort is transforming the arenas into world class venues with the Ministry of Youth, Greater Amman Municipality and Al Hussein Youth City all pulling together to carry out the work. “As soon as we had the honour of being awarded this event, we started work immediately,” he said.

“We are working day and night to ensure that it will be ready to host a truly memorable event.” Forty-one male boxers will qualify to the Olympics from eight weight categories in Amman, while 22 females will go through to Tokyo in five weights.

BERGAMO, Italy — Mario Pasalic scored the winner seconds after coming off the bench as Atalanta came from behind to beat Roma 2-1 and consolidate fourth place in Serie A on Saturday at the expense of their Champions League rivals from the capital.

The Croatia midfielder came on just before the hour mark in Bergamo to fire in the crucial goal 19 seconds later, to boost confidence ahead of his side’s first ever Champions League last 16 game against Valencia, not at their home 21,300-seater Gewiss Stadium, but at the much larger San Siro next week.

“This is an important victory,” said Atalanta coach Gianpiero Gasperini.

“Against a side like Roma this advantage is not definitive. They are a strong team, but in us there is the belief that we can finish in front.”

Atalanta are eight points behind third-placed Lazio.

In three-team title race, Inter are ahead of Juventus on goal difference with Lazio just a further point behind. 

Josip Ilicic had threatened after half an hour for the hosts, firing wide, with a Rafael Toloi overhead kick off target minutes later.

But it was Roma who broke through first with Edin Dzeko pouncing on a defensive blunder from Jose Luis Palomino.

Dzeko dispossessed the centre-back to rifle in past a helpless Pierluigi Golini in the Atalanta goal.

Palomino made up for his earlier error just after the break volleying in the equaliser in a move started off a Papu Gomez corner.

On-loan Chelsea playmaker Pasalic came on for Duvan Zapata after 59 minutes and curled in to seal the three points.

‘Mental problem’

Atalanta pull six points ahead of fifth-placed Roma, who fell to their third consecutive defeat for the first time this season.

Paulo Fonseca’s side have taken just four points in seven games this year.

“It is not a physical, but a mental problem,” said Fonseca. 

“Right now it is important to work on the players’ heads.

“We have to believe we can get out of this situation.

“There are still 14 games left, I think it is possible to fix it, even if it is difficult.”

Earlier, Bologna missed the chance to move into the Europa League berths finishing with nine men against Genoa who won 3-0 for their first away success in over a year.

Defender Adama Soumaoro scored in his second game for Genoa since his loan move from Lille, tapping in an Andrea Masiello’s cross after 28 minutes. 

Bologna’s Jerdy Schouten was sent off minutes later for a dangerous tackle on Valon Behrami.

Antonio Sanabria got the second just before the break following a stunning run from his own half.

Bologna’s woes were compounded when Stefano Denswil was sent off for a second yellow card late with Domenico Criscito converting from the spot on 90 minutes as Genoa got their first win on the road since January 2019.

Luigi Biagio’s first game as SPAL coach ended in a 2-1 loss at Lecce.

LONDON — Pep Guardiola faces a huge test of his loyalty to Manchester City after his club were hit with a stunning two-year suspension from UEFA competitions on Friday.

City have been banned from the Champions League and Europa League for the next two seasons and fined 30 million euros (£24.9 million) after UEFA found them guilty of committing “serious breaches” of financial regulations.

The Premier League champions overstated sponsorship revenue in accounts submitted between 2012 and 2016, according to European football’s governing body.

UEFA also said City failed to cooperate with an investigation into the matter launched by its Club Financial Control Body.

The shock punishment will cost City an estimated £170 million in lost Champions League revenue and the club reacted furiously, immediately vowing to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

“Manchester City is disappointed but not surprised by today’s announcement by the UEFA Adjudicatory Chamber,” a statement read.

“The club has always anticipated the ultimate need to seek out an independent body and process to impartially consider the comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence in support of its position.”

But, while City urgently plan their appeal, the football world waits to see how Guardiola reacts to a punishment that could convince the Spaniard to quit the Etihad Stadium at the end of the season.

Guardiola reportedly has a break clause in his contract which means he can depart at the conclusion of this campaign should certain stipulations be met that satisfy the City hierarchy.

City officials were said to be confident that, despite an underwhelming season which has seen them fall 22 points behind runaway Premier League leaders Liverpool, Guardiola would honour a contract that currently ties him to the club until 2021.

But staying with City now European football could be off limits is likely to be a rather more unappetising prospect for Guardiola.

Whether the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss wants to stick it out at City will show how much he has grown to love the club since arriving in 2016.

Guardiola is close to City directors Txiki Begiristain and Ferran Soriano, who worked with him at Barca, but his ties to City’s Abu Dhabi-based owner Sheikh Mansour might be frayed if there is no escape from the embarrassing ban.

Leading City to a pair of Premier League titles in record-breaking fashion and winning a domestic treble last term underlined Guardiola’s enduring qualities.

However, he has failed to get past the quarter-finals of the Champions League with City and another daunting test lies in wait in the last 16 when they face Real Madrid later in February.

Doomsday scenario

The most recent of Guardiola’s two Champions League titles as a manager came way back in 2011 with Barca and his failure to add to that tally is the one blemish on his otherwise glittering CV.

The critics who crow that he can only win Europe’s elite club prize with a genius like Barca’s Lionel Messi in his team have nagged at Guardiola for years.

So the prospect of wasting two seasons waiting to return to the pursuit of his holy grail could be too much for Guardiola to bear, especially as rampant Liverpool look capable of keeping the Premier League crown out of City’s grasp for years to come.

Asked about the potential for a European ban in December 2018, Guardiola had been optimistic, but that trust proved misplaced.

“We will not be banned. I trust in them [the owners],” he said at the time. “If it happens, because UEFA decide that, we will accept it and move forward.”

Everything has changed now and reports immediately after news of the ban broke claimed the 49-year-old would consider his future unless City win the appeal.

Guardiola is already 7/4 with bookmakers to not be in charge of City before the start of the next Premier League season.

In a doomsday scenario for City, it might not only be Guardiola who could be weighing up his options if the ban is upheld. 

Mansour may feel the damage to his reputation and to City’s status is too much to take and could put the club up for sale.

City stars including Raheem Sterling, Kevin Be Bruyne, Sergio Aguero and Aymeric Laporte are unlikely to be impressed at being hauled off the Champions League stage through no fault of their own.

They may consider demanding transfers, adding another factor that could push Guardiola towards the exit door.

REGGIO EMILIA, Italy — Ferrari unveiled its new SF1000 car for the 2020 Formula One season, which they hope will deliver a first world drivers title since 2007, during a glitzy ceremony on Tuesday.

The single-seater’s name acknowledges the fact that the Italian team will start its 1,000th world championship race during the coming campaign, which begins with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 15.

Narrower than last season’s SF90, with a deeper red colouring the body, Ferrari is pinning its hopes on the SF1000 car earning them drivers and constructors titles that have eluded them for 12 and 11 years respectively.

“I like it very much,” said German driver Sebastian Vettel. 

“It’s much narrower at the back than last year and it is also redder, it’s even better. I’m impatient to drive it, that will be even more fascinating than looking at it.”

The Scuderia broke with tradition and presented its new racing car outside of its stronghold of Maranello, unveiling it instead amid of sea of red on stage at the Teatro Romolo-Valli in the nearby city of Reggio Emilia.

“This is a very important place for our country,” Chairman of the Ferrari group John Elkann explained.

“It was in this city that the tricolour flag, which became that of Italy, was created. And Ferrari is proud of Italy and of representing Italy.”

“This is a very special year,” continued Ferrari Team Manager Mattia Binotto. 

“It’s 70 years of Formula One, we have been there from the start and we are going to reach the figure of 1,000 Grands Prix, which is something incredible.” 

Barring a forced change in the calendar because of the deadly coronavirus in Asia, the milestone should be reached in June during the Canadian Grand Prix.

Equal footing

Binotto stressed that this season veteran Vettel and 22-year-old Charles Leclerc, who impressed on his debut last season, would be starting on an equal footing.

“We have seen that they can both fight for the best results. They are both on the same level. It is up to them to race,” he added.

Vettel, a four-time world champion with Red Bull and twice runner-up with Ferrari, insisted it was not a hard decision for him to accept.

“I don’t see it that way,” said the 32-year-old. 

“I don’t see Charles going up and me going down. We have the same car and, for me, it doesn’t change anything. That was also the case last season.”

Last season, the association between the experienced Vettel and Leclerc often turned into a duel, coming to a head when the two drivers collided during the Brazilian GP. 

But Leclerc, who won two races and finished fourth place in the world championship, said lessons had been learned.

“We have learned the lesson from Brazil. We are free to race, but we are teammates,” he said. 

“A lot of people are working behind us, as a team, and things like Brazil should not happen.”

Both drivers said they were impatient to try out the new car, which will be on track next week for the pre-season testing in Barcelona. 

“I felt emotional when I saw it,” said Monaco’s Leclerc.

“Now I can’t wait to be out on track and try it and to show all the work that has been done on this car.

“It’s going to be a great challenge. I’m ready to learn from my mistakes to become an even better driver.

“What all of us want at Ferrari is to be world champions.”

Vettel Ferrari’s ‘first choice’

Binotto insisted that Vettel remained the team’s “first choice” for the future despite reports that Lewis Hamilton could join the Italian stable next season.

“Seb is our first choice, our preference,” Binotto said during the presentation of the team’s new SF1000 car for the 2020 season at Reggio Emilia in northern Italy.

Vettel, 32, joined Ferrari in 2015 and the German’s contract ends at the end of the coming season, as does world champion Hamilton’s at Mercedes.

“We’re focused on our drivers. We’re not thinking about it for the moment,” added Binotto.

“We’re talking with Seb and we’ll take the time needed. We are focused on the car and the tests. There will be a time for the rest.”

“I think it’s good to live in the present moment and the present moment is what’s behind us,” said Vettel, pointing to the new car Ferrari. “We will have time,” he added.

Ferrari’s second driver Charles Leclerc extended his contract with the Scuderia this winter until 2024.

Hamilton is preparing to launch his bid to equal Michael Schumacher’s record of seven drivers’ championship titles after cruising to a six title last campaign.

LONDON — Mercedes Formula 1 boss Toto Wolff said on Monday that his team’s tie-up with Lewis Hamilton is the “obvious pairing”, with the future of the six-time world champion still unclear on the eve of the new season.

Hamilton, 35, is out of contract at the end of the year and the British driver has been linked with a move to Ferrari.

“It is the obvious pairing going forward,” said Wolff as Mercedes unveiled a five-year partnership with Jim Ratcliffe’s chemicals company Ineos in London.

“We would like to have the fastest man in the car and I know Lewis wants to be in the fastest car. There is an obvious mutual outcome.”

Wolff revealed he had not spoken to Hamilton since the team’s Christmas party in December.

“We travel for 10 months of the year and what we do over the winter is that we leave each other in peace,” he said.

“We said we would continue our discussions when he is back from America and we have kicked off the season.

“Lewis has proven he is the best current driver, and on the mid and long-term. I would hope we can continue to provide technology to the best driver.”

Hamilton will attempt to equal Michael Schumacher’s record of seven drivers’ world titles this year while Mercedes are attempting to win a seventh straight constructors’ championship.

The F1 season gets under way on March 15 in Australia.

Ineos boost

Mercedes themselves have, yet, to commit to remaining in Formula One beyond 2020 but Wolff said the partnership with Ineos “was an important cornerstone of our future plans in Formula One”.

“It once again serves to demonstrate the attraction of the sport for ambitious, global brands with a long-term vision for success.”

The five-year deal is Ratcliffe’s latest sporting investment. The Team Ineos cycling team, formerly known as Team Sky, made their debut last year and Ineos funded Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge’s successful quest to run a marathon in under two hours in October.

Ineos also owns football clubs Nice and Lausanne and is sponsoring Team UK for the 2021 America’s Cup in sailing.

“The Mercedes team is a leader in global sport and have consistently shown that they are at the forefront of technological innovation and human performance,” said Ratcliffe, one of Britain’s richest men.

“By strengthening our partnership with Mercedes-AMG Petronas it will allow us to identify and unlock even greater performance gains across the wider Ineos sports family.”