Tottenham will go into their final Europa League group stage game against Royal Antwerp looking for a win and to finish the group on top. How many changes in the team can we expect from Jose Mourinho?
Spurs are on a real high at the moment as they sit on top of the Premier League and have just beaten their neighbours in the North London derby. They will want to keep this good run of form going and finish on a high on Thursday.
The one injury problem that Spurs will have to deal with is the absence of Erik Lamela. However, there is another possible absentee, in Tanguy Ndombele, as the midfielder was not fit to start against Arsenal on Sunday.
Apart from that though, there are no other concerns.
Despite wanting a win, Mourinho will be looking to rotate his squad to keep them fresh for the Premier League. Joe Hart will start in goal as they line up in their preferred 4-2-3-1 formation.
Matt Doherty and Ben Davies will be the starting full backs as they will be looked upon to provide some width. Davinson Sanchez and Japhet Tanganga start as the centre backs and will want to be better than they were last week.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, who impressed against the Gunners, is likely to be given a rest with Harry Winks coming in. He will be partnered with Giovani Lo Celso and these two have the passing range to hurt Antwerp. With their dribbling ability and passing range, this midfield can really hurt the Belgian side.
Since Ndombele might not play, it opens the door for Dele Alli to come into the team. The Englishman will be flanked by Gareth Bale and Lucas Moura. Spurs have two wingers that are extremely skillful on the ball and dangerous off it as well.
If they click, it is going to be a long night for the visitors from Belgium. Finally, it will be Carlos Vinicius leading the line, and tasked with scoring the goals.
Tottenham will want to finish in first place as it will give them a more favourable draw in the next round. They must be careful not to concede easy goals and if their defence is a little more alert than last time, they will surely win this game.
Predicted Tottenham Starting XI Against Royal Antwerp (4-2-3-1):
Joe Hart, Matt Doherty, Davinson Sanchez, Japhet Tanganga, Ben Davies, Harry Winks, Giovani Lo Celso, Gareth Bale, Dele Alli, Lucas Moura, Carlos Vinicius