Whoops, cheers and all sorts of chants ringing around White Hart Lane, though neither set of supporters have had much to sing about, unless you count a fumble by Benfica's goalkeeper Jan Oblak, who failed to deal with a Christian Eriksen cross.

Christian Eriksen wastes a free-kick wide on the right, which puts his team on the backfoot and leaves Sandro with little option but to lunge at Miralem Sulejmani and the Brazilian earns a yellow card for his rash challenge.

Benfica's Guilherme Siqueira weaves down the left flank and, according to the referee, is felled illegally by Kyle Walker. The visitors are awarded a free-kick, but it comes to nothing - Luisao nodding tamely towards Hugo Lloris.

Tottenham have settled nicely, dominating possession in the opening five minutes, though neither side has tested the opposition goalkeeper yet.

Peter a Spurs fan in Kent, via text: Tim Sherwood is a breath of fresh air. No forked tongue there. Players haven't cared & he's right to challenge them!

Good footwork by Emmanuel Adebayor and he sets Tottenham on the attack, but Paulinho loses the ball in midfield and the men in white must start all over again.

Infostrada Sports:, external #RedBullSalzburg fail to win for the first time since 24 November. Goalless draw at #FCBasel ends winning streak of 14 official matches.

The full-time whistles have gone at the three early kick-offs and Valencia were the big winners as they secured a 3-0 win away at Ludogerets, despite being reduced to 10-men after just 26 minutes. It ended goalless between FC Basel and Salzburg while Porto beat Napoli 1-0 thanks to a goal from Jackson Martinez.

Benfica get the match under way. The home fans are in full song.

Tim Sherwood is in his seat but gets up to welcome Benfica manager Jorge Jesus to White Hart Lane. Seconds until kick-off...

Tim Sherwood on opponents Benfica: "Benfica are in the best period and we know they will be a tough team. They will look to pick up this trophy like Chelsea did last year. We like Rodrigo, he will be a threat, but we are hoping to worry about our threats. We have to treat them with the utmost respect."

Dave, a Spurs fan from Cardiff, via text: Sherwood has done the right thing. Throw down the gauntlet. Performances haven't been good enough. Weed out those looking for a way out. Next four days decides the season.

Anonymous via text: Harry Kane up top? Sherwood? Really? This is our only chance of a trophy and Soldado is on the bench.

Tottenham boss Tim Sherwood on Harry Kane: "He has been very unlucky not to get more opportunities but tonight we are looking for him to thicken up the midfield and get forward to support Emmanuel Adebayor.

"He is a player I know very well and I know he is a player that we may have to drag off the pitch at the end of the game.

"Benfica are a very good side, they should be in the Champions League and they are going all out to win it."

Tottenham manager Tim Sherwood on his recent comments: "There has been no problem, it's been business as usual and we are on to the next game which is this massive game against Benfica.

"I have not noticed any difference. They have all trained very well and they know these fans will demand 100% effort and desire. I am hoping to see a reaction."

Things have gone from bad to worse for Ludogorets who have now also been reduced to 10 men and still trail Valencia 3-0 at home. Juninho Quixada has been sent off for a foul on João Pereira. Elsewhere it remains goalless between Basle and Salzsburg and Porto have beaten Napoli 1-0.

Benfica have all but secured their league and have reached the semi-finals of both their domestic cups, but who are the men who make them tick?

The Paraguayan forward Oscar Cardozo was out for two months with a back injury, but returned to action at the end of January. He is apparently still not fully fit, but starts at White Hart Lane.

Then there's Lazar Markovic, the 20-year-old who has already represented Serbia 10 times and was recently named the Portuguese league's player of the month after scoring the winner against Guimaraes.

Image source, Getty Images

Tottenham's £26m summer signing Roberto Soldado will watch the start of this match from the substitutes' bench and that's thanks to Harry Kane. But who is Harry Kane? Indeed. Kane's Twitter, external account informs us he's a "footballer for Tottenham Hotspur and England", but I guess we knew that already.

The 20-year-old striker, a graduate from Tottenham's academy, made his Premier League debut on the opening day of the 2012-13 season and has been capped at England under-17, under-19 and under-21 level, scoring a hat-trick for the under-21s against San Marino last October. That's enough information for now.

Some have criticised Tim Sherwood for his blunt assessment of Sunday's defeat by Chelsea, with former Tottenham striker Gary Lineker saying on Twitter:, external "There is no quicker way to lose the confidence of your players than to slag them off publicly."

Should Sherwood have criticised his players after such a heavy defeat? Has his gruff words inched him closer to the sack? You can tweet your thoughts using the hashtag #bbcfootball, external or text 81111.

Tony Brown:, external Where is Lamela? Injured? Rested? Terrible?

Mark Lynch:, external Why is Soldado not starting?! Finally scores in open play & not appeared for a min since even when playing 442. Poor management.

Zak Dagrate:, external Benfica with Cardoza, Gaitain and so on, will thrash Tottenham.

BBC Radio 5 live

Tottenham fans have yet to take to their seats ahead of their team's match against Benfica, but there's 30 minutes or so until kick-off which means, at this moment in time, pies and pints take priority. Don't forget, there'll be live coverage of the match on BBC Radio 5 live.