Expect Rotated Spurs Squad to Host Brighton in BPL

Injuries and additional games from advancing in the UEFA Champions League may force Mauricio Pochettino and Tottenham Hotspur to do some heavy rotation with Spurs.

Let’s start with who we KNOW to be out at this point: Harry Kane, Moussa Sissoko, Harry Winks are all for sure out. It would seem – although with the pair nothing is ever certain – that Erik Lamela and Serge Aurier would be out as well. Then on to the question mark of Hugo Lloris, who was absent from the Saturday Manchester City affair. Add in the fact that Victor Wanyama and Eric Dier are both still coming back from injuries and Dele Alli has a broken hand. Outside those nine players things are rosy at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the midweek tussle with Brighton.

LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 13: Kyle Walker-Peters of Tottenham Hotspur during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Huddersfield Town at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on April 13, 2019 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images) /

The back half of the team seemed easy enough to determine, with a question mark around the Dier, Skipp, Wanyama tandem and a little flexibility at the fullback slot, but I fully expect Lloris to continue his rest along with Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen. Now what happens up front may be a different matter.

Dele Alli needs the minutes, with or without the broken hand, and Christian Eriksen needs some rest. Eriksen hasn’t been his usual world-beating self of late and a few days off could do the Dane some good. It is likely, as there are not many other choices that Hueng-Min Son and Lucas Moura then interchange with Dele to form the attacking line. BTW, Dele is wearing the armband and scoring!

STEVENAGE, ENGLAND – JANUARY 23: Vincent Janssen of Tottenham Hotspur takes on Javier Murua of Athletic Club Bilbao during the Premier League International Cup match between Tottenham Hotspur U23 and Athletic Club Bilbao at The Lamex Stadium on January 23, 2019 in Stevenage, England. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images) /

This leaves us with our striker, which would logically be Fernando Llorente, given his goals of late and the injury to Harry Kane. But what about Vincent Janssen. He made the trip to Manchester City and if you go to the team page, the man has a number again, his old #9 shirt and is listed in numerical order again. While I’d love to see him light-it-up and stake a claim to back-up Harry Kane, I’d settle for solid play to facilitate a summer transfer. Either way, you must play to make that happen, if there was EVER a time for the return of Janssen, barring MORE injuries, this is it.

Here is the 4-2-3-1 line-up:

Gazzaniga

KWP – Foyth – Sanchez – Davies

Dier – Skipp

Moura – Dele – Son

Janssen

Okay so not total rest for the weary but here is our project bench, although Christian, Toby and Jan get the full day off:

Danny Rose, Victor Wanyama, Michel Vorm, Fernando Llorente, Kieran Trippier, George Marsh, and Timothy “TJ” Eyowa