Tottenham prepare for life without Heung-min Son with a tough test against Bayern Munich, and all eyes will be on how Thomas Frank lines up his side in their final pre-season fixture. Let’s take a look at our predicted Tottenham XI to face Bayern on Thursday.
Tottenham Hotspur bid farewell to their club captain, Heung-min Son, in their final pre-season tour of Asia in South Korea against Newcastle United.
However, their friendly games continue as they are set to play the final match in Germany against Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena in the Telkom Cup.
It is sure to be a new-look Tottenham squad, one that will not feature Heung-min Son, who has been a part of Spurs for the last decade.
With the Bayern Munich clash coming six days before the UEFA Super Cup matchup against Paris Saint-Germain, we expect Frank to field a rather strong XI on Thursday, and here is our prediction.
Predicted Tottenham starting XI vs Bayern Munich
Goalkeeper – Guglielmo Vicario: Kinsky was given a run-out last time against Newcastle United, with the Czech international featuring for ninety minutes, as Frank continues to share gametime between his two goalkeepers. With that in mind, we expect Vicario to make a return as number one.
Right-back – Pedro Porro: Porro is certainly one of the first names on the teamsheet at the moment, given Tottenham’s full-back issues. He should continue at right-back.
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Centre-back – Cristian Romero: The Argentine featured for just forty-five minutes in the tie against Newcastle United and should be ready to go once more against the German champions.
Centre-back – Micky van de Ven: We have not seen much of Romero and van de Ven in Tottenham’s pre-season games, with the pair playing together just once. We expect that to change with Paris Saint-Germain looming next week.
Left-back – Djed Spence: Ben Davies struggled last time out against Newcastle United, which shows he is of the standard to compete at this level. We expect Spence to start here to build some more fitness before Tottenham’s first competitive game.
Pivot midfielder – Joao Palhinha: Palhinha joined Tottenham on Sunday and could very well be starting against his former club a few days later. Spurs need him to be ready at least before the Premier League season kicks off.
Pivot midfielder – Rodrigo Bentancur: It could be a pivot fielded with much-needed experience against Bayern Munich, as we expect Frank to turn to Bentancur as the second six, but give him a more advanced role.
Attacking midfielder – Lucas Bergvall: With James Maddison’s rather unfortunate injury setback last time out against Newcastle United, Thomas Frank will need to continue experimenting with makeshift ten options, and that could see Bergvall take up the number ten role.
Right winger – Mohammed Kudus: Brennan Johnson got the start against Newcastle United, and that could see Kudus return to the starting XI against Bayern Munich on Thursday, as both continue to stake a claim for who deserves a starting spot ahead of the season.
Striker – Mathys Tel: Dominic Solanke’s fitness remains uncertain, with Frank revealing he could be back for the clash against Newcastle United or Bayern Munich. He missed the game against the Magpies, which means he could feature here either off the bench. That should see Tel lead the line as he returns to take on his former side. Hopefully, he can grab a goal after his bad miss last game.