Spurs started the season in fine fashion but as the weeks have rolled along, their intensity has seen a dip. Their last outing was a 2-2 draw against Manchester United and next up, they take on the blue half of Manchester.
On Friday, Postecoglou’s side will welcome Manchester City to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the fourth round of the FA Cup and winning this one will be a real uphill battle for the home side.
The last time these two sides met, Kulusevski’s 90th-minute equaliser helped Spurs secure a point but since then Man City have massively pulled up their socks, while Tottenham have gone on to lose to teams like West Ham and Brighton.
Under their new manager, Spurs play a very fearless and attractive brand of football and at home, they will be eager to take the fight to Man City however, to be able to stand a chance at winning, Postecoglou will have to make sure the visitors do not get a sniff of goal within the first 20-odd minutes.
Tottenham Hotspur injuries and team news:
Ryan Sessegnon is nearing a return to full fitness and the Spurs manager has updated that he will be back in training sometime next week.
Ange said in his pre-match press conference: “He’s still in rehab. We’re hoping Sess will re-join us next week if all goes well.”
Alongside Sessegnon, Ben Davies is out until February with a hamstring problem but thankfully, Micky van de Ven is back so he will slot in alongside Romero in central defence.
Son Heung-Min, Bissouma and Pape Sarr are all unavailable due to their national team commitments and their absence is going to be a setback for the Spurs manager.
Son’s absence means Richarlison is most likely to lead the line while new arrival Timo Werner plays out on the left-hand side.
The biggest positive for this has been the return of James Maddison whose untimely injury was a major blow to Ange’s plans. The summer signing has been training normally and his manager has hinted that he is likely to start in the No 10 role on Friday.
The Spurs boss has said: “Yes, since the return ‘Madders’ is back training with the group, which is good. So he’s feeling good.”
Bissouma and Sarr are both missing which means Oliver Skipp will pair up with Bentancur in the middle of the pitch while Maddison plays in the more advanced role.
Spurs predicted line up vs Man City:
Predicted Starting line up(4-2-3-1): Vicario; Udogie, Van de Ven, Romero, Porro; Bentancur, Skipp; Maddison, Werner, Kulusevski; Richarlison.
