Tudor must unleash Spurs "monster" who'd walk into Arsenal's starting XI

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Thomas Frank is anciet history, and it's the Igor Tudor chapter at Tottenham Hotspur, with the Croatian coach drafted in to save the Londoners' season.

On Sunday, Arsenal will present Tudor and his coaching staff with the toughest of tests, but the Gunners are hardly in the best of form, and Tudor's freshly implemented system could make it one to remember for the struggling hosts.

The 47-year-old's arrival comes with many questions. Will Spurs look to get on the front foot? How will they hold up against Arsenal's frontline?

The most pertinent question, though, centres on the formation and line-up Tudor will field on his Premier League debut.

Tudor's predicted XI vs Arsenal

Tudor is a proponent of the 3-4-2-1 formation. It's a slightly contentious set-up that bears a whiff of Antonio Conte's one-time system in London.

However, the Croatian coach is adaptable, and with Cristian Romero and Kevin Danso absent, we're likely to see Micky van de Ven partner with Radu Dragusin at the rear, flanked by Pedro Porro and Djed Spence in his moonlit left-back role.

Sadly, the N17 side are struggling with so many injuries to key players, but we should still see a dynamic midfield, Joao Palhinha the anchor and Conor Gallagher joined by one of Pape Sarr or Archie Gray, who has been impressive in recent weeks.

Gallagher, 25, needs to step up after his £35m move from Atletico Madrid in January. The England international is a dynamic, high-energy style of midfielder, and that presence will be crucial in winning the central battles against Declan Rice and co.

This is a group of players who have been fighting beneath their weight class this season, and many of them should be doing better. The forwards need to make headway, and Randal Kolo Muani will no doubt be buoyed by Tudor's arrival, having scored five times from 11 games under the manager's wing at Juventus last year.

However, not everyone at Spurs has been poor this season, and there's one player in particular who could thrive on Sunday, perhaps even good enough to walk right into Arteta's starting line-up.

The Spurs star who'd walk into Arsenal's team

Tottenham are not as strong or as coherent a unit as Arsenal right now, and that's a hard fact. However, that doesn't mean they can't beat their bitter rivals, who laboured to a draw at Molineux on Wednesday evening.

In order to achieve this, Tudor must unleash Dominic Solanke at number nine.

Solanke left Bournemouth for north London in 2024, completing an initial £55m transfer to Tottenham. However, the 28-year-old's time at the club has been ruined by injuries, both last season and this year.

He was unable to prevent Frank's sacking earlier this month, but with four goals from nine matches since bouncing back from injury, Solanke might just hold the key to turning things around, and he could certainly prove himself an upgrade on Viktor Gyokeres, who signed for the Gunners from Sporting Lisbon for a £64m fee last summer.

There are similarities. Both are strong and able carriers, naturally gifted in front of goal and experienced in the European game. However, it looks like Solanke, a "pressing monster", according to journalist George Sessions, might just be the superior player, more intelligent and better with his movement around the area.

Indeed, there's no question that Gyokeres has been the weak link in Arteta's team this season, and the lack of a world-class goalscorer may prove their downfall in the chase for a title, yet again.

Of course, he might be a powerful kind of frontman, a focal point for his teammates to target, but that's not to say that Solanke isn't capable of producing the spectacular.

The Athletic's Jacob Tanswell hailing him as a "top, multi-faceted forward" during his Bournemouth days, and with a prolific edge to his game too, the Three Lions star would trump Gyokeres at the spearhead of Arsenal's title-winning system, and this might just prove advantageous for Tottenham on derby day.

Tottenham fans have been through a lot this season, and there's no question that this Super Sunday clash will be approached with a measure of trepidation.

But if Tudor polishes the system and ensures the Spurs players are ready to fight for each other, they might just pull off something special, especially with Solanke leading the line.