Real Madrid Vs. Tottenham Hotspur 2011: Injury Will Keep Steven Pienaar Out Of Champions League Fixture

Earlier today, the Tottenham Hotspur official website posted a piece on Steven Pienaar and his previous experience in the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League. He was just 21 years old then, part of an Ajax side that featured players like Wesley Sneijder and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. They lost that tie in heartbreaking fashion to AC Milan, and Pienaar says he's looking forward to going one step beyond that quarterfinal. Unfortunately, Pienaar will not be able to contribute to the team's cause on Tuesday, as he has been declared out of the match with Real Madrid with a groin injury.

Pienaar isn't the favorite son of the CFC community, but he is a serviceable and hard-working player on the wing. Both Aaron Lennon and Gareth Bale look likely to play, but since their fitness is questionable, Pienaar is a pretty big loss. Our depth on the wing is not good right now, as evidenced by our narrow and anemic play against Wigan on the weekend. Unless Bale and Lennon are both fit and able to give us maximum effort, we have some serious problems.