Tottenham are set to take on Reading as Thomas Frank embarks on his first outing as Spurs manager.
All eyes will be on the Danish manager’s team selection and formation, with plenty of questions still looming over how Tottenham will set up under the 53-year-old.
It will also give the former Bees boss his first opportunity to see the players in action and help him decide which members of the squad will be part of his future at N17.
With over thirty senior players currently registered at Spurs, as well as a handful of younger members, the result will be secondary as Frank will undoubtedly rotate the side throughout.
Nevertheless, the former Brentford boss will still want to get off to a good start, while the Lilywhites will hope to get a first glimpse of their new signings.
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Frank should have most of his squad available, though Son Heung-min’s late arrival to pre-season could see the captain miss out on the game.
This fixture may come a little early for James Maddison, who is still recovering from his injury from last season, while it’s expected that Radu Drăgușin is still a way off first-team action.
Dejan Kulusevski is also ruled out, but his international colleague Lucas Bergvall seems to have recovered in time to play a part against the Royals.
New Tottenham arrivals Mohammed Kudus and Kōta Takai are expected to be available, while it’s unclear whether Morgan Gibbs-White will have signed for Spurs after Nottingham Forest threaten to block the deal.
Predicted lineup
Frank could give Kudus and Mathys Tel the nod behind Dominic Solanke after desperately looking to improve the front line’s functionality this summer.
In midfield, he will likely start Archie Gray in his preferred role alongside George Abbott, who has impressed in the first week of pre-season.
The biggest surprise could be in the centre of defence, as Takai and Ashley Phillips could be given a chance to prove themselves ahead of Guglielmo Vicario.
Prediction: Reading 1-3 Tottenham
As with any pre-season fixture, especially this early into the teams’ preparations, the result is the least essential element as both clubs look towards building up fitness and on-field connections.
Frank is likely to field an experimental side, and while he’ll be keen to arrest Tottenham’s awful defensive record from last season, a new-look backline is expected to concede.
However, their firepower vastly dwarfs Reading’s, with Tottenham News predicting a 3-1 victory for the Lilywhites in a game that will give clues as to how Spurs will look to operate under their new manager.