Tottenham Hotspur Projected XI for Fulham Rematch in EPL

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Tottenham Hotspur’s Portuguese head coach Jose Mourinho gestures on the touchline during the English Premier League football match between Tottenham Hotspur and Burnley at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, on February 28, 2021. (Photo by DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images) /

After a convincing win on the weekend at home against Burnley, Tottenham Hotspur travels south in London to take on Fulham FC. The real question regarding the Tottenham starting XI is how much rotation will or will not be used on the side. José Mourinho has rotated – heavily at times – during Spurs midweek contests, does that continue here in this crucial Premier League matchup?

Where Tottenham Might Rotate?

There are some players who are simply core players to the team and barring injury or death they are likely to play. Those include the two attacking talisman Heung-Min Son and Harry Kane, as well as Pierre-Emile Højbjerg. Based on performances and the trust in their back-ups those three are nailed on to start, unless they do not have to, like last week against Wolfsberger.

In addition to the Højbjerg, Son, and Kane both Tanguy Ndombele and Hugo Lloris are close to nailed on starters. Hugo did sit last week for Joe Hart in Europa and Ndombele only played about 20 minutes same as did Højbjerg. Of course, that was last week when Spurs were taking a 3 away goal advantage into a second-leg match.

This week, Tottenham starts the match 0-0 and knows Fulham can do something, as they drew Spurs at N17 in January. With this in mind, those five definitely start. It seems likely given his performance and the need to continue to build Bale up to play multiple 90-minute matches later this month, Gareth Bale will start too.

This means the places left for rotation are in the number 10 hole and frankly the entire backline. José Mourinho has been just as likely to change who plays center-half or right-back for a given match as he is to change a winger or attacking midfielder. Yes, Davinson Sanchez and Toby Alderweireld have been preferred in League of late but those were not back-to-back matches.

Additionally, the strains and demands placed on the fullbacks almost necessitate rotation. Of course, with players returning from injuries Spurs need to be careful too. With about half the team question marks and half the team nailed on, what is the starting XI for Tottenham on Thursday at Craven Cottage?