Tottenham come into this week’s UEFA Conference League match against NS Mura facing a lot of tough questions. After losing three straight games in the Premier League, they would welcome the distraction of European football.
It was a day to forget for Spurs as they lost to their arch-rivals on Sunday, and they will be unhappy with how lacklustre their performance was. Manager Nuno Espirito Santo would like to see his team respond with a strong showing on Thursday.
Tottenham vs NS Mura FYIs:
Kick-off time: 8 PM GMT, 30 September Thursday
Tottenham Team News: Go here
Form Guide (All Competitions): Tottenham (LDLWL) Mura (WLWDD)
There are likely to be a few changes made for this game and one of them is going to be Pierluigi Gollini coming in as the goalkeeper. Nuno is likely to stick with the 4-2-3-1 formation that has been the norm. Matt Doherty will start as the right-back with Ben Davies on the opposite flank.
In the centre of defence, Spurs are likely to go with Cristian Romero and Joe Rodon. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg would be the one player to retain his place in midfield on Thursday. The Dane was not good at the Emirates and would like to make amends for that performance.
Partnering him is going to be Oliver Skipp who missed out on starting at the weekend. These two have enough quality between them to set the tempo of the game.
In attack, Nuno has a few options to play around with and one player who will surely come into the starting XI is Bryan Gil. The Spaniard impressed a bit against Arsenal and would be waiting for this opportunity.
Tanguy Ndombele is likely to be pushed up the pitch to play in a more attacking role. And rounding up this trio is going to be Argentine Giovani Lo Celso who has the guile to hurt the opposition defence.
As unlikely as it sounds, Tottenham could do with giving Harry Kane a game to rest. If needed, the England captain can be brought on from the bench. This would see Heung-min Son start up front and he would be keen on scoring again. Though Spurs know that no game is going to be easy, they should be able to get a comfortable win on Thursday.
Predicted Tottenham Starting XI vs NS Mura (4-2-3-1):
Pierluigi Gollini, Matt Doherty, Cristian Romero, Joe Rodon, Ben Davies, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Oliver Skipp, Giovani Lo Celso, Tanguy Ndombele, Bryan Gil, Heung-min Son