After the postponement of their last two fixtures, Tottenham Hotspur returns to the pitch for a huge clash with Leicester City. The Foxes and Spurs are in seventh and eighth position on the table heading into this one and if either side secures all three points, it will be an enormous boost in their pursuit of qualifying for European next season.
Since Leicester City returned to the Premier League in the 2013/14 season, their fixture with Tottenham is the third-highest scoring fixture in the Premier League during that period. It averages almost four goals a game (3.85).
Leicester City vs Tottenham Hotspur FYIs:
Kick-off time: 7.30 PM GMT, 16th December 2021
Tottenham Team News: go here
Premier League Preview Podcast: go here
Form Guide (All Competitions): Leicester City (WDLLW) Tottenham Hotspur (DWLWW)
There are some question marks over who will actually be fit to play for Spurs by the time kick-off arrives. Having consulted my crystal ball, the Lily Whites will play a heavily rotated squad. Let’s look at how it might just look.
French national team captain Hugo Lloris will line up between the posts. He’s a world-class option Spurs are lucky to have in goals.
The three-man defense might have a familiar look to it as well. Eric Dier should line up in between Davinson Sanchez to his right and Ben Davies to his left.
Providing width on the left-hand side will be Spaniard Sergio Reguilon. His injury is not as bad as first feared, which would be an immense relief for the Spurs faithful. On the right-hand side, I am going to pick Japhet Tanganga. I’d love to pick Matt Doherty, but he made a fool of me last time, so he has done his dash.
With Oliver Skipp reportedly having coronavirus, there’s an opportunity for forgotten man Harry Winks to get a run in midfield. Not that long ago he was starting in the Champions League final, so it’s not a tremendous gamble to start him here.
Thankfully, Pierre Emile Hojbjerg is fit and he will lie up alongside him.
The wide attacking players will probably look a little different, with Son Heung-min and Lucas Moura both reportedly having COVID. I am going to pick Steven Bergwijn on the right and Ryan Sessegnon on the left. I know they have used Sessegnon as more of a wing-back option, but I feel he can fill this role.
Centrally it will be the club and national team captain Harry Kane starting who will be desperate to get amongst the goals and get his season back on track.
Regular readers will know I don’t trust a full-strength Spurs side to get a result, so there’s no way I think a second-string side will win here. A valuable three points for Leicester City is my prediction for this one.