Rodrigo Bentancur could make his Premier League debut for Spurs today…
What’s the word?
The north London outfit welcome Southampton to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this evening as they continue to push for a place in the top four.
And football.london reporter Alasdair Gold – who is one of the most reliable when it comes to anything Lilywhites related – believes the deadline day signing is in line to start from the off.
‘The Spurs boss could be tempted to hand first starts to his two new signings Rodrigo Bentancur and Dejan Kulusevski, who both made their debuts against Brighton in the FA Cup on Sunday,’ he wrote.
‘Bentancur is in a fitter position to start against Southampton, having played two near full matches for Uruguay during the international break. Kulusevski has not started a match in almost a month, so much will depend on his level of fitness.’
Debut inbound?
This is certainly plausible as manager Antonio Conte will be without the services of Oliver Skipp, who remains on the treatment table with a groin injury.
You’d imagine that Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg is going to start but the place next to him is up for grabs and as Gold alludes to, it could well be the Uruguayan who gets the nod over Harry Winks.
That is something that’ll provide the Spurs faithful with excitement as they’ll get to see their new man in action after a very promising cameo in their FA Cup win over Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday night.
Described as a “very solid all-round midfielder” who is “great at breaking play up and can pick a pass as well” by The Athletic’s Charlie Eccleshare, the 24-year-old was said to have made a “big impression” in his 13-minute cameo.
In the absence of Skipp, there won’t be a better alternative than Bentancur, it’s just whether or not his fitness will hold up after returning late from international duty in South America last week.
Plenty of fans around N17 have grown tired of Winks and his underwhelming displays in a Spurs shirt, so the former Juventus midfielder could offer something fresh in midfield.
The fact that Gold can see him starting tonight is enough to get very excited indeed.
AND in other news, Conte must ruthlessly axe Spurs’ £18m-rated “nightmare” today, he’s holding them back…