Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho has all but conceded Tuesday night's Carabao Cup 3rd round tie with Chelsea.
The game at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will be the seventh and last of a hectic September.
On Thursday, Spurs host Maccabi Haifa in the playoff round of the UEFA Europa League, with the winners progressing to the group phase.
"What would you do in my position?" Mourinho responded when asked about potential team selection for the visit of his former side.
"I would like to fight for the Carabao but I don't think I can.
"We have a game on Thursday that gives us not as much money as the Champions League but the group phase of the Europa League gives us a certain amount that for a club like us is very important.
"It's a competition with a possible group phase that gives us a good chance to go through to the next knockout stage so this game on Thursday is very important for us."
Qualification for the Europa League group phase in itself will earn Tottenham €2,920,000 with each win in the group worth €570,000. Simple mathematics mean Mourinho will prioritise Europe over the League Cup.
When asked if Chelsea's less-than-convincing start to the season meant it's a good time to play them, Mourinho snapped back, "You're joking or you're serious?
"Chelsea played Saturday, they have Sunday and Monday then they play Tuesday and then they play again on the weekend.
"So their fantastic squad, if the manager decides not to rotate he can perfectly play with the players that he wants.
"As you know and forgetting the past Thursday, we played on the Sunday, now we play on the Tuesday, we play on the Thursday, we play on the Sunday again.
"I think Sonny was just the first [injury]. More will come. So he was the first, but more will come."
Son Heung Min suffered a hamstring injury in Saturday's 1-1 Premier League draw with Newcastle, and Mourinho revealed the Korean will be out for a number of weeks.
