Tottenham Hotspur will be looking to make it three wins on the bounce when they host Newcastle United in the Premier League as the race for the top four hots up.
The Lilywhites could not only go three points clear of Manchester United, who are sat in sixth, after their slip-up against Leicester City on Saturday night but they would also put the pressure on their fourth-placed arch-rivals, Arsenal, before their clash with Crystal Palace on Monday night.
However, the Magpies will be no easy task as Eddie Howe has transformed their fortunes at St James’ Park since taking the helm – three wins in their last five outings have seen them move clear of the relegation zone.
Antonio Conte is facing a few injury problems heading into kick-off at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, so it will be interesting to see what sort of side he can name this afternoon.
Here’s the XI we’re predicting…
There could be just one change from the side that defeated West Ham 3-1 before the international break.
Sergio Reguilon is doubtful for this encounter, and with Ryan Sessegnon currently absent through injury, it leaves the Italian head coach light on options at left wing-back.
Without the pair, it hands him only two options.
He can either revert to a back four with Ben Davies returning to his natural left-back role, or he could switch Matt Doherty to the other flank and reintroduce Emerson Royal on the right.
It’s the latter that seems more plausible, so the £26m Brazilian defender returns to the team, playing alongside the Irishman, Davies, Eric Dier and Cristian Romero, in front of skipper Hugo Lloris.
Emerson, 23, has not been in the best of form since arriving from Barcelona in the summer, with his performances being described as “terrible” and “horrendous” on occasions.
The midfield remains unaltered, with Oliver Skipp also still missing, so Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Rodrigo Bentancur continue in tandem.
Further forward, the electric trio of Heung-min Son, Dejan Kulusevksi and England talisman Harry Kane will look to continue their fine form together, even despite the big dilemma surrounding Steven Bergwijn.
It’s hard to ignore the Dutchman’s form for his national side this week, scoring three times, twice in the win over Hojbjerg’s Denmark and once in the draw with Germany.
But given the form of the aforementioned unit, Bergwijn may still have to wait for a chance to impress domestically.
AND in other news, Conte handed big injury boost ahead of Newcastle clash…
