Jose Mourinho warned that the return of Tottenham supporters will not help his team if they only come to luxuriate in the hospitality of the club's swanky new stadium and satisfy their football fix.
Spurs will admit 2,000 supporters for the first time since lockdown in the north London derby against Arsenal on Sunday and Mourinho wants them to become part of the team.
'It depends on the fans, their profile, the way people will face the game,' he said, when asked if returning fans will help him stay top of the Premier League.
'Do they want to go to the most beautiful stadium in England and enjoy that? Or do they want to go to play the game?
'If they want to enjoy the stadium and their passion for football, I don't think it makes a big difference.
'If they want to go there and play, wear a Tottenham shirt and play the game, then that can give a little more motivation and pleasure for us, yes.'
Mourinho remarks address the dilemma facing those clubs not in Tier 3 of Covid restrictions who can invite supporters to buy tickets but only a small percentage.
Tottenham, pricing tickets at £65, promised a 'proportionate allocation' between 'season ticket holders, premium and other stakeholders, such as partners and affiliates'.
The fear for the head coach will be an excess of corporate fans who will not make their presence felt in support of his players.
As for complaints from managers such as Marcelo Bielsa and Steve Bruce, in charge of clubs in Tier 3 who must continue to play in empty stadiums, Mourinho said: 'I can understand their position but at the same time the situation is so difficult and frustrating for everybody.
'We have to accept all these things for the good of football, the good of people's happiness and the perspective of "his is going to change for the better". For me, we have to accept and adapt.'
The Spurs boss also expressed concerns that four clubs in the Premier League – Manchester City, Manchester United, Aston Villa and Burnley – still have a game in hand because of their delayed start to the campaign.
And demanded the matches were played before the competition reaches its half-way stage, even if it means those clubs involved have to play four times in a week, as Tottenham did at the start of the season, when involved in the Europa League qualifiers.
'It is very difficult to accept,' said Mourinho. 'I don't even know when they're going to play these matches which in every other country would be impossible.
'They have to be played until at least the end of the first round, so before the 19th game, they should be playing these matches.
'It's difficult to accept because it can affect the competition. I don't even know when they are going to play. I was trying for an answer and no-one can give me that answer.
'By the way, we played four matches in one week and nobody was crying or supporting us about it. And now my colleagues, when do they play these matches?'
Source: m.allfootballapp.com