Roberto De Zerbi has been urged to consider starting Tottenham Hotspur wonderkid Luca Williams-Barnett in Saturday’s Premier League at Leeds United, while one pundit has backed the club’s winning run to end at Elland Road.
The 18-year-old attacker made his Premier League debut against Crystal Palace, coming off the bench to replace Mathys Tel, and almost made a stunning impact when his brilliant run and cross was volleyed wide from close range by Mohammed Kudus.
Williams-Barnett was described by De Zerbi as a “great talent” after the contest and is expected to be on the bench again when Tottenham look to make it four wins on the spin in West Yorkshire.
However, it appears that a large percentage of Spurs supporters want to see Williams-Barnett starting the match, as per a poll run by football.london this week.
In a total of 3134 responses, 65 per cent voted for Williams-Barnett to start the game at Elland Road, while 34 per cent said ‘no’. The remaining 1 per cent were not sure.
While a start looks highly unlikely at this stage, especially given the improving form of Tel on the left flank, it’s only a matter of time before De Zerbi turns to the teenager, who is widely regarded as the best talent to come off the club’s academy in years.
“When I work, when I have young, talented players, for me nothing changes,” De Zerbi said of Williams-Barnett. “I thought it was the right moment for him. Because it is his first game in the Premier League. But his qualities, he is a big, big talent.
“He is a very, very great talent. Very young, but a great talent.”
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Sutton tips Tottenham winning run to end
Meanwhile, former Blackburn and Chelsea striker Chris Sutton believes Tottenham’s impressive winning run will come to an end at Elland Road on Saturday.
Despite being impressed with the turnaround of De Zerbi’s side and the ‘swagger’ with which they are now playing, Sutton thinks they will up drawing 1-1 in west Yorkshire.
He told BBC Sport: “Tottenham always seem to do well against Leeds – they have only lost one of their past 15 meetings in the Premier League, going back almost 25 years.
“I am a little bit of a believer that some teams always do well, or badly, against certain opposition or on certain grounds.
“I had the same as a player when I had bogey teams or stadiums, as well as lucky ones. For example, while I always used to score against Everton at Goodison Park, I always had a stinker at Highfield Road, Coventry’s old home, despite getting plenty of goals against them in home games for Blackburn.
“So, I am definitely not going for Leeds to win this – but do I back Tottenham to win again and continue their good run?
“Roberto de Zerbi’s side have rocketed up the table on the back of three wins in a row, although they were helped out a lot by Jean-Philippe Mateta’s red card in their victory over Crystal Palace last time out.
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“Tottenham are flying at the moment, and their confidence is up – we are seeing a bit of a Spurs swagger for the first time in a long while. So, while I don’t think they will make it four wins in a row, I don’t see them being beaten, either.
“It’s likely to be a very tight game. Leeds were a bit unlucky to lose to Bournemouth last week, but their lack of goals is becoming an issue.”