Tottenham Hotspur will be travelling to Villa Park this weekend in a Premier League fixture which is just a formality for the Lilywhites given that Ange Postecoglou’s side already have their heads in Bilbao, where they are scheduled to face Manchester United in the UEFA Europa League finals. And with the finals looming large, Ange Postecoglou is expected to rotate his squad this Friday as he looks to rest his key players ahead of the game against Ruben Amorim’s side. And given that this weekend’s outcome won’t affect the Lilywhites’ European qualification (now dependent on Bilbao), Tottenham will desperately need some sort of a rhythm and clarity heading into their biggest night of the season.
Let us take a look at Tottenham predicted lineup vs Aston Villa
Tottenham predicted lineup vs Aston Villa
Here’s how the Lilywhites are likely to line up against Aston Villa in the late Friday night kickoff, where they will start in a 4-2-3-1 which shifts into a 3-2-5 in possession:
Goalkeeper: Guglielmo Vicario
While there have been a lot of questions around Vicario during the ongoing campaign, those are for the off-season for now, and he will retain his place between the posts. He is someone who loves to play out when facing high presses, and given how Aston Villa love to press early and force direct play, it will be interesting to see how he lines up. I am expecting him to play short passes to the likes of Danso and Davies to try to draw Villa into a high press situation before he tries to go along the press with contained passes.
Defenders: Spence, Danso, Davies, Gray
Djed Spence will start on the right back with Archie Gray taking up the left back role. The latter will be expected to tuck into the midfield in possession, where he creates more of a double pivot alongside Sarr and Bissouma. And outside of possession, the former Leeds United full-back will revert to a traditional full-back role. Then coming down the middle, Kevin Danso will likely start as a central defender, and he will be tasked with getting the better of Watkins. You’d expect the Austrian to remain compact and avoid overcommitting. Ben Davies will accompany Danso at the head of defence as the duo of Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven gets some needed rest ahead of the game against United.
Double Pivot: Bissouma and Sarr
Tottenham will form a pivot down the middle where Yves Bissouma will anchor the midfield in a deeper role where you’d expect him to get hold of Villa’s possession centrally and protect the back line in transitional situations (this is something that Unai Emery would be looking to do).
His midfield partner, Pape Matar Sarr, will play in a more box-to-box role where he will play an important role in progressing the ball and maybe offer some sort of support to Kulusevski (by making third-man runs beyond Villa’s double pivot). Defensively, you expect Sarr to be on top of McGinn and his aggressive runs from the middle of the park.
Attacking Trio: Odobert, Kulusevski, Tel
Coming into the attacking outset, Wilson Odobert will hold the width on the right where you expect him to go at Maatsen 1v1 when isolated. When Tottenham have the ball in the first and second phases, the Frenchman will look to receive early and engage the full-back, then Dejan Kulusevski takes the No.10 role, where the Swede will try to drag Kamara out of shape and deliver whipped crosses or slip passes to Richarlison.
Mathys Tel will most likely be starting wide left, and he will aim to stretch the pitch and exploit space, and the Bayern man’s directness could hurt Villa if Spurs win the ball high or counter quickly — but he must also recover and defend Villa’s left-sided overloads or risk exposing Archie Gray (or whoever starts in the defensive fullback flank).
Striker: Richarlison
Then Richy comes upfront, and he will have a physical role to play by pinning Pau Torres and being a constant outlet for central progression, and if he plays back-to-goal complemented by his near-post movement, it could end up being crucial for the North Londoners, especially when Tel and Odobert cut inside.
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Tottenham predicted lineup vs Aston Villa (4-2-3-1)
Vicario; Porro, Danso, Davies, Archie; Bissouma, Sarr; Odobert, Kulusevski, Tel; Richarlison