Tottenham Hotspur will now turn their attention towards the FA Cup, where they will be facing Everton in the fifth round of the competition. Given what we know of the team news for this one, should we expect a lot of changes to the team from the one that played on the weekend?
Spurs got back to winning ways in the Premier League as they beat West Brom 2-0 at the weekend. This put an end to their losing streak and that will give the team some much needed confidence going into this game.
The most important news from Sunday’s match was the return of Harry Kane to the team. During his absence, the North Londoners looked toothless in attack and having him back makes them so much more dangerous; obviously.
Jose Mourinho will have his men set up in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Joe Hart in goal giving Hugo Lloris a rest. The defence will undergo some changes, given the big workload over the past couple of weeks.
Ben Davies will keep his place at left back and it will be Matt Doherty on the right this time. In the centre of defence, both Toby Alderweireld and Davinson Sanchez will drop to the bench. In their place, it will be the duo of Eric Dier and Joe Rodon.
As for the centre of the pitch, it is likely that Mourinho will go with Moussa Sissoko, to combat the attacking threat that Everton possess. He will be alongside his usual partner, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, giving the Spurs midfield a more balanced look.
Gareth Bale will look to make an impact this time around and will be given a more central role. On either side of him will be Heung-min Son and Steven Bergwijn on the wings. If these three can get on the ball regularly, Everton will find it difficult to contain Spurs.
Tottenham would love to have Kane starting the match, but they must not ovetax him as he is just returning from an injury. This will let them start Carlos Vinicius, who has scored a few key goals this season.
It will be a tough game against their Premier League rivals, and they must not take them for granted. But if Spurs play with the belief that they can win, they are likely to advance to the next round.
Predicted Tottenham Starting XI Against Everton (4-2-3-1):
Joe Hart, Matt Doherty, Eric Dier, Joe Rodon, Ben Davies, Moussa Sissoko, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Steven Bergwijn, Gareth Bale, Heung-min Son, Carlos Vinicius