Tottenham projected starting 11 for Crystal Palace

Defence

We all know who is starting in goal. Hugo Lloris saved his team’s blushes on Thursday evening, a much needed heroic performance from the Frenchman.

Sergio Reguilón and Serge Aurier will almost certainly come back into the side after resting on Thursday. While Matthew Doherty and Ben Davies stuck to the task well against Fulham, neither will get the nod in this one, and rightly so.  Reguilón is Jose’s first choice left back while Aurier will offer more going forward than Doherty, who has endured an inconsistent campaign.

The big question is whether Jose will go back to his preferred central defensive pairing, Davinson and Toby. This would, ordinarily, be a no-brainer for Jose. While both had shaky moments against Fulham, they fought tooth and nail to help Spurs preserve a clean sheet. Unfortunately Sanchez once again showed his erratic side, almost handing Fulham an equalizer with a particularly abominable clearing attempt. 

The other contributing factor in Jose’s decision making process is the duo’s lack of rest going into Sunday’s affair. Toby, who isn’t exactly a spring chicken, needs more time to recover than his younger counterpart, which provides Eric Dier a lifeline. Both Davinson and Toby were berated, placed under intense pressure for the duration of the second half, so weariness is definitely a factor. Though I’m going out on a limb here and enlisting my support in Toby and Davinson to start their third consecutive match.