- Tottenham face Chelsea on Tuesday
- Few more minutes for James Maddison
- Guglielmo Vicario could return
Tottenham travel to Stamford Bridge to take on Chelsea in a game that could essentially confirm their Premier League safety.
Roberto De Zerbi’s side have been in fine form in recent weeks, having picked up eight points from their last four games in the competition.
If West Ham lose to Newcastle United later today, Tottenham can mathematically avoid relegation with a win against the Blues as they would be five points clear of the Hammers with just one game to spare.
De Zerbi won’t make too many changes to his team as they have fared quite well, but he will surely be tasked with making a really important decision between the sticks.
Vicario could start for Tottenham vs Chelsea
Earlier this week, Guglielmo Vicario was spotted training with the first team as he continues to work his way back up to full fitness after hernia surgery.
Antonin Kinsky has fared admirably in his absence and it would be a harsh call to drop him. However, last month, De Zerbi confirmed that Vicario is his first-choice goalkeeper at Tottenham, so it remains to be seen what the Italian decides.
We don’t want Kinsky dropped, as his performances have been more than good enough. But judging by the boss’ earlier comments, Vicario could come straight back into the team if he’s fully fit.
Jamie Carragher referred to Kinsky as a ‘vital’ player for Tottenham in recent weeks, so De Zerbi is faced with arguably the toughest call of his tenure so far.
Defence: Pedro Porro, Micky van de Ven, Kevin Danso, Destiny Udogie
No changes at the back for Tottenham. Van de Ven should captain the team once again in Cristian Romero’s absence, while Porro and Udogie are expected to bomb up and down the pitch like they’ve done so in previous games.
Midfield: Rodrigo Bentancur, Joao Palhinha, Conor Gallagher
Once again, no reason to change a midfield that has actually worked quite well in recent weeks.
Bentancur continues to run the show in the centre of the park, while Gallagher has improved tremendously under De Zerbi.
James Maddison got his first minutes of the season in the dying embers of the Leeds United game and should feature at some point in the second half.
The Englishman has enough quality to decide games with one swing of his right boot and could be invaluable in a tough away game.
Attack: Randal Kolo Muani, Richarlison, Mathys Tel
Tottenham are working with bare bones in attack, so the front three essentially picks itself once again.
Randal Kolo Muani was recently omitted from the France squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, a massive blow for the PSG striker.
With his loan spell coming to an end, he will look to sign off on a high.
Mathys Tel went from hero to villain against Leeds United, but the Frenchman has performed admirably during the relegation run-in and will look to wreak havoc against a porous Chelsea backline.
When is Roberto De Zerbi’s Tottenham press conference?
We have picked Vicario to start ahead of Kinsky, not really because we believe that should be the case, but only due to De Zerbi’s previous comments.
Nevertheless, it is a problem for the boss to address and everything depends on Vicario’s fitness.
De Zerbi will face the media tomorrow at 1:30 PM BST and will likely answer questions about Vicario and other injury news, so we’ll have more clarity on the situation shortly.
In the meantime, Tottenham fans will have one eye on the game at St James’ Park today and will hope for Newcastle to get a positive result against West Ham.
It is a big if, but the Lilywhites can mathematically confirm safety on Tuesday, which would make their last Premier League game against Everton a dead rubber.
