Tottenham are hoping to take a significant step towards opening their new stadium this season, with planning under way for test events on March 16 and 23.

The stadium must host two successful test events, with increasing levels of capacity, in order to earn a safety certificate from the local authority.

Spurs have no fixtures between March 9-31 after Crystal Palace’s progress in the FA Cup forced a postponement of their meeting on March 17, and they are exploring the possibility of holding the events — likely to include an academy fixture — on consecutive Saturdays next month.

If they are a success, Spurs would be in a position to open the stadium with a competitive fixture, with the earliest possible date now the visit of Brighton on April 6.

However, that game will also be rearranged if Brighton beat Millwall to reach the FA Cup semi-finals, leaving the home game against Huddersfield, scheduled for April 13, as the most likely opener. Standard Sport understands the Premier League would prefer the club to play their final five games at the new stadium or remain at Wembley until the end of the campaign, leaving them pushing hard to move in time for Brighton.

The first test event will likely have a capacity of 20,000-30,000 and could be an open training session on March 16, while the second event a week later would need to be at close to the ground’s full capacity of 62,062.

Spurs’s initial plan for the second test event last summer was to stage a legends match against Bayern Munich but they may decide on a more low-key academy fixture this time, after faults with the critical safety systems delayed the £1billion project since September. In December, Spurs held an orientation day for 6,000 season-ticket holders in the South Stand and at the start of this month they tested the ticketing systems when nearly 1,000 fans were invited to watch the Super Bowl in the East Stand.

The club’s hopes of playing Champions League football in their new home this season could rest on the draw for the quarter-finals — assuming they do not squander a 3-0 lead over Borussia Dortmund.

Uefa are open to Spurs moving back to N17 for the last eight but the first legs are scheduled to be played on April 9-10 and they are unlikely to be allowed to open the ground with such a high-profile fixture on a week night. That means that unless they can open the stadium against Brighton, they would most likely have to play a ‘home’ first leg at Wembley.

Spurs should be able to play a second leg at their new stadium, with the games due to take place on April 16-17, a few days after Huddersfield’s visit.