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Tottenham Hotspur are gearing up plans for a test event of sorts to be held at their new stadium on December 16, football.london understands.

Progress is being made on site with the construction of the new 62,062-seater ground, which has seen its opening date shifted twice since the summer.

The stadium was originally meant to open for the start of the Premier League campaign before September 15 was announced as the big day. However widespread issues with the fire safety systems inside the stadium ended that scenario.

Spurs are set to make a further announcement on the progress at the new stadium early next month when they have a clearer picture of how the ongoing testing of the safety systems has gone.

While there is still plenty to be done, progress appears to be being made because football.london understands that the club is forming early plans for a small scale 'familiarisation event' involving fans on December 16, the day after the team play Burnley in the Premier League at Wembley.

It would be the first event at the new stadium involving supporters. Club and stadium staff have previously tested some of the facilities on site during an operational orientation day on August 4.

This new event would be a slightly larger scale affair, to allow fans to get in and around the stadium and test parts of it. However, football.london understands it will not be on the scale of something like an open training session involving the club's stars as has been mooted as a potential first test event.

The stadium must hold a series of test events in order to gain the relevant safety certificates from Haringey Council in order for the ground to hold competitive matches.

If the December 16 event is able to be held and is a success, it should spark a series of events growing in scale over the following weeks.

Tottenham have struck a deal to use Wembley Stadium for the rest of the 2018/19 season as a back-up in case the stadium is not ready, but Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino stated last week that he hopes to be in the new ground by January or February.

The Tottenham manager has visited the stadium twice in the past month. Before the international break, department heads from across the club were invited to an event inside the ground, which included a tour of many of the areas of the stadium that are nearing completion and a floodlight demonstration with dancers on the pitch.

Pochettino was joined by his coaching staff including assistant manager Jesus Perez, first team coach Miguel D'Agostino, goalkeeping coach Toni Jiminez and academy head John McDermott. Spurs chairman Daniel Levy was also at the stadium for the event.

Pochettino and his staff then returned last week to look at more of the interior of the ground.

"We were there, checking the facilities, the changing rooms and everything, We are so excited, we cannot wait to move there," said Pochettino.

"We understand that it is a fantastic project for the future of the club that will be forever. To wait maybe one or two months more, we need to have patience.

"We are so disappointed because we expect to play in 2018 and it should be ready for play before the end of the year but that is not going to be possible and we need to wish and hope that in January or February we can move there and it will be a fantastic moment for everyone, the supporters, the players. It will be a massive boost."

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