Tottenham will hope to put their premature FA Cup exit behind them when they resume Premier League commitments with a trip to Wolves on Saturday.
Defeat at Sheffield United on Wednesday night made it the fourth consecutive year Spurs have exited the domestic cup at the fifth round, but slim hope remains for a positive end to the season despite a number of issues plaguing the club.
Manager Antonio Conte is yet to return from Italy but Tottenham can strengthen their grip on fourth place with victory at Molineux.
Here’s the side stand-in boss Cristian Stellini could preside over if Conte remains absent at the weekend.
GK: Fraser Forster – The big Englishman will continue with Hugo Lloris out until April. Unsighted and beaten at his near post for Sheffield United’s winner.
CB: Cristian Romero – The World Cup winner was rested on Wednesday, with Davinson Sanchez providing little in the way of assurance in his absence.
CB: Eric Dier – Part of another cup exit at Spurs as he was nutmugged by Iliman Ndiaye’s strike.
CB: Clement Lenglet – The Frenchman’s return will likely see Davies pushed further forward and Ivan Perisic drop to the bench.
RWB: Emerson Royal – Has been excellent in defence over the past month or so, though Pedro Porro gave fleeting glimpses of his attacking potential against the Blades.
CM: Oliver Skipp – Got his first Spurs goal against Chelsea with a scorcher from distance. Currently the favoured partner for Hojbjerg with injuries ruling Yves Bissouma and Rodrigo Bentancur out of action.
CM: Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg – Almost gave away a goal at Bramall Lane with an awful attempted header to Forster, though he wasn’t punished.
LWB: Ben Davies – Has provided better distribution out wide than Perisic recently and Ryan Sessegnon is out injured.
RW: Dejan Kulusevski – Still not quite at his dynamic best and hasn’t scored since the 4-2 defeat at Manchester City in mid January.
ST: Harry Kane – Watched from the bench before coming on as Spurs’ hopes of winning the FA Cup were extinguished. Missed a decent headed chance late on.
LW: Richarlison – Did not look sharp as Kane’s central replacement in midweek but his dogged running and gamesmanship will be required against Wolves.
Credit: 90min.com
