Exeter City ready for Tottenham test in EFL Trophy campaign

Grecians will be taking the competition seriously and want to earn three more points

Exeter City manager Gary Caldwell said that the Grecians are taking the Bristol Street Motors Trophy seriously this season and that point was emphasised by coach Dan Green, who will be taking the Grecians for their clash with Tottenham Hotspur Under-21s at St James Park tonight.

It was after Saturday’s 2-0 win against Stevenage that Caldwell made the claim and such is the size of squad he has at his disposal now, there is no reason why he and the Grecians shouldn’t as they look to build some momentum to really kick on this season.

There is sure to be many changes from the side that started Saturday’s win against Boro, but probably not too many from the team that ended Saturday’s win with the likes of new signing Mustapha Carayol, strikers Sonny Cox and Millenic Alli and defender Ben Purrington, who all came on against Stevenage, likely to start.

“It shows the strength of the group we have got here and if we are going to achieve some of those goals that we have for ourselves, it is so important that everyone feels a part of that and everyone is ready,” City’s Player Development Phase coach said. “That is what these games provide us with an opportunity to do.

“We do not underestimate the benefit of winning games of football and the habits that creates, so we see this as the next game in front of us, the next opportunity to do those things and to build a group on those successful habits.

“There is a different atmosphere for those midweek (games) and a different level of excitement when you start to see players that have come in from the squad, or young players from the Academy and they start to show what they can do.

“It is important that when we go into these games, we have to make this game feel like a home game. We are respectful of what Tottenham will bring, but we trust the players and back what we do. The fans are a big part of what we do and we need them just as much as we do in any other game.”

The likes of Academy graduates Jake Richards, Louie Cayless and Liam Oakes are also likely to be involved in some capacity as the Grecians blood more of their latest crop of exciting youngsters into the first team environment.

But while development is very much at the forefront of everyone’s mind at St James Park, winning is as well and three points this evening would guarantee qualification for the next stage after the Grecians opened their campaign with a 2-1 win against Swindon Town last time out.

“Spurs have an incredibly successful Academy” Green said. “Their 21s group is off the back of winning PL2 (Premier League 2) last season, so I think you will see a group of players that will play in a certain way and will have full belief in the way that they play.

“We are very much looking forward to the game and looking forward to the teat that they will bring.

“These games are really useful and they provide different types of tests, different tactical tests as it goes through, but I come back to the things we ultimately want from the game.

“We want to win the game, we want to put ourselves in a fantastic position to qualify for the next round of this competition, we want a performance that backs up the levels from Saturday and then leads us into the Wigan game this Saturday and we want to put ourselves in a position where the squad is as strong as possible moving forward for this busy period.”