Tottenham Hotspur have been defeated in two of their last three first division matches but have progressed well in the Carabao Cup, having defeated city of manchester in the middle of the week. The Lilywhites will look to build on that momentum in the English top flight when they face Villa Aston this weekend.
It's time for Ange Postecoglou's team to pick up pace in the Premier League to have any chance of finishing in the top four. Picking up just 13 points so far this campaign, Spurs have lost more than 50% of what they have disputed for and will need a much better performance in their upcoming league games than their previous ones.
Here's a look at how the Spurs could line up:
Goalkeeper – Guglielme Vicario will be Tottenham's preferred option on Sunday. There isn't much to say about his performances at this point, but given that they have lived up to expectations, there is no reason not to start the Italian.
Defenders – Micky van de Ven is injured and will miss the next few weeks of action. Postecoglou confirmed in his pre-match press conference, so Radu Dragusin will play alongside Cristian Romero in central defense.
Destiny Udogie will be called up to play at left back, a position van de Ven occupied against City, while Pedro Porro will replace Archie Gray at right back against Aston Villa.
The son returns at Werner's expense
Midfielders – Tottenham Hotspur were strong in the midfield against Manchester City and won the battle in the midfield against Pep Guardiola's team. Rodrigo Bentancur could therefore retain his place as a defensive midfielder, as could Dejan Kulusevski on the right side of the engine room, having provided two assists in the EFL Cup.
Pape Mata Sarr scored one of Spurs' goals against City but is likely to make way for the rested James Maddison.
Forwards – Son Heung-min is expected to return from injury and replace Timo Werner on the left wing. The South Korean is not suffering from any serious problem, but Tottenham's medical staff are managing his recovery with caution.
Brennan Johnson and Dominic Solanke will play at right winger and forward respectively as they look to return to the kind of form we saw from them just a few weeks ago.
Here's what the Spurs could look like on paper:
