Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has called on Tottenham to come together and "fill the role" of banned head coach Antonio Conte against Marseille tonight.
Conte will not be allowed on the touchline or in the dressing room for the crunch Champions League clash at the Stade Velodrome after being sent off for entering the field of play as he protested Harry Kane's disallowed winner against Sporting Lisbon last week.
Spurs need a point here to guarantee a place in the last-16 but a defeat would see them drop into the Europa League, and wreck Conte's one-year anniversary in the job.
The Italian will not be allowed to communicate with his players or staff from stepping off the team bus at the stadium until 15 minutes after full-time.
He is set to watch the game in the stands, alongside his brother Gianluca, an analyst who will be in communication with the bench, while Conte's assistant Cristian Stellini and first-team coach Ryan Mason lead the side.
Hojbjerg, one of Conte's on-pitch generals, says the players have no choice but to get through the match without their boss.
"Of course your head coach is a massive part of a team. Luckily he has a very good staff and players that are well aware of what he expects from them," the Dane said.
"We will all try our best to fill the role. In the end no one can fill his role but we will do our best to be together and make sure that we can get through this together, because we have to get through this together and we will do it."
Conte will deliver his team talk on the coach en route to the Stade Velodrome, and his assistant Stellini yesterday revealed that preparing for the game has been "a totally different world" to usual.
Hojbjerg continued: "He is a person and coach who lives the game with great passion, with his heart and we are feeling this in a good way.
"We have to make sure that we are well prepared, which we are. After we have to go to be successful together. The fact is that he will not be there on the sideline. We have to deal with that.
"Everyone is well aware, the staff is well prepared and we all know that we have to help each other. For me it is not a difficult situation, it is maybe a different situation, but we know what to do, we are well aware of the situation and as well the ambition."
Spurs will again be without injured forwards Dejan Kulusevski (hamstring) and Richarlison (calf), while Cristian Romero is also sidelined with muscle fatigue.
