Tottenham Hotspur faces another difficult trip without key wide player Dejan Kulusevski this Tuesday, as they travel to Eintracht Frankfurt following a 3-1 loss to rivals Arsenal.
The Swedish winger returned from the international break with a hamstring injury, having played 174 of a possible 180 minutes for Janne Andersson’s side, recording an assist in a 4-1 loss to Serbia.
Since joining from Juventus at the start of the 2020-21 season, the 22-year-old has made an enormous impact, registering 13 goal involvements in just 14 starts last season, as well as three assists and a well-taken goal against Southampton this time around.
While Antonio Conte has yet to start Kulusevski in the Champions League, preferring Richarlison in both group stage games so far, the Lilywhites certainly missed his attacking spark on Saturday, as the Italian coach struggled to find attacking options from the bench to freshen up a beleaguered front three.
The attacking trio of Harry Kane, Son Heung-min, and Richarlison will almost certainly be the marksmen of choice on Tuesday, with the team hoping to strike early to avoid facing their lack of offensive options once more.
Ben Davies’ fitness is a growing concern, as he did not travel with Wales for their Nations League fixtures, and he was also absent for the North London derby.
The versatile defender has been a rock for this Tottenham team, but he will miss this week’s Champions League match due to a knee injury.
As Spurs look to replicate Frankfurt’s preferred formation, the former Swansea City full-back should be replaced on the left side of the back three by Clement Lenglet.
Oliver Glasner’s 3-4-3 formation was undoubtedly inspired by Antonio Conte’s revival of the system at Chelsea during the 2016-17 season, with the Austrian coach preferring inverted wingers Daichi Kamada and Jesper Lindstrom over powerful, wide runners.
Battles in the central areas will be crucial in this game, so Rodrigo Bentancur and Yves Bissouma will be tasked with tracking those inverted runs.
We expect Ryan Sessegnon and Davinson Sanchez to be given opportunities to shine as they look to recover from an intense weekend battle.
Tottenham’s possible starting lineup: Lloris; Romero, Dier, Sanchez; Sessegnon, Bentancur, Bissouma, Perisic; Richarlison, Kane, Son
Leave a Reply