Both Tottenham and Barcelona enter tonight’s International Champions Cup contest at the Rose Bowl with several of its stars on vacation following the World Cup.
The question is how will this affect the turnout for the 8 p.m. game, which will also be televised on ESPN.
The ICC is off to a sluggish start in Southern California and tonight’s game will be the ultimate test of how far fans are willing to go.
Both clubs had players in the World Cup for various countries and the majority of them went on long runs in the tournament, including the eventual winner France.
Less than 22,000 came out to StubHub Center on Wednesday for Manchester United and AC Milan and under 19,000 witnessed Tottenham’s 4-1 win over AS Roma, Wednesday at SDCCU Stadium in San Diego.
Barcelona, who has drawn near sell-out crowds on recent trips to Southern California, will be without Lionel Messi, (Argentina), Ivan Rakitic (Croatia), Luis Suarez (Uruguay), Gerard Pique (Spain), Phillippe Coutinho, (Brazil), Ousmane Dembele (French), Sergio Busquets (Spain) or Jordi Alba (Spain).
Samuel Umtiti (France) and Yerry Mina (Colombia) are also not on the tour. Barcelona’s roster consists of 13 players from its B team.
Tottenham, who has trained at LMU since arriving in the U.S., left its England and Belgian players from the World Cup at home.
However, the likes of Christian Erikson (Denmark), Son Heung-Min (South Korea) and Davinson Sanchez (Colombia) are among the notables on the trip.
The ICC takes on a bit more importance for a club like Tottenham with the start of the new Premier League season just two weeks away.
“I think the most important things was to beat a good team and compete at a level as we did today,” Tottenham’s Mauricio Pochettino said. “It’s preseason. Of course the result is always important because it provides you with better confidence and trust in how you are working.
“It was fantastic for our players and that is what we find. Compete like a team and play football going forward.”
Tottenham opens its new season, Aug. 11 against Newcastle United.
The Spurs are currently in a three-year stretch where they’ve posted their best finishes in the Premier League, with two third-place finishes and a second-place.
Former England national team member and Manchester United legend Bryan Robson counts Tottenham as one of the challengers for the upcoming Premier League season.
“Having success in the World Cup is always a plus for the club and country,” Robson said. “England doing so well, only enhances the Premier League and encourages big name players to come and play.”
Tottenham has been one of the few teams really making the effort to get out in the community while in Southern California.
The Spurs have visited the Chargers training camp, and the Clippers training facility. Members of the Kings (Paul Ladue and Michael Amadio) made a stop at LMU and they’ve had visits with the Angels (Andrelton Simmons) and the Ducks (Ryan Getzlaf).
Club ambassador Ledley King also threw out the first pitch at an Angels’ game.
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