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Tottenham Hotspur continue their Premier League exploits with a trip to Manchester United in Saturday's lunchtime kick-off and football.london will bring you all the action from Old Trafford.

Spurs have enjoyed an upturn in results recently and are currently four games unbeaten, including reaching the last 16 of the Champions League and then roaring back from 2-0 down to draw against Manchester City at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last weekend in the Premier League.

Now Thomas Frank's side take on Manchester's other Premier League club away from home with a United side that has picked up its form as well under interim boss Michael Carrick, without the distraction of European football after Spurs beat them in the Europa League final last May.

Our Tottenham correspondent Alasdair Gold is at Old Trafford throughout Saturday to cover the game in depth including all the news before, during and after the match. Scroll down for his latest updates from the Premier League clash in Manchester.

Here's the Tottenham team we reckon Thomas Frank will select to face Manchester United on the Premier League in Saturday's lunchtime kick-off

Tottenham make their way up the country to Manchester United on Saturday in the Premier League looking to continue their recent upturn in form.

Thomas Frank's team are currently unbeaten in four games across all competitions after their 2-2 draw with title-chasers Manchester City last weekend and now they will tackle a United side at Old Trafford that has been turned around under caretaker boss Michael Carrick.

Spurs need to start climbing up the table themselves and a positive display in the lunchtime kick-off in Manchester will continue the momentum shifting in the right direction.

Frank has got a couple of players back fit and available in Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven with Djed Spence also close to a return and "touch and go" for the game according to the Dane.

With Van de Ven and Romero available to play at Old Trafford, the question is whether it's Joao Palhinha or Radu Dragusin who starts alongside them if Frank decides to start again with a back three and the 3-4-3 formation. Palhinha's performance in the role against City and ability to get forward could see the Portuguese getting the nod despite the Romanian's strong second half against Pep Guardiola's side.

The wing-backs pick themselves right now as Destiny Udogie and Archie Gray are the only ones currently fit while Pape Matar Sarr might get to start ahead of Yves Bissouma in midfield with Conor Gallagher after making a big difference in the second half against City.

Wilson Odobert, who was ill like Romero for the City game, still looked dangerous despite feeling under the weather and should get the green light ahead of Randal Kolo Muani and Mathys Tel to play as one of the 10s alongside Xavi Simons with the Dutchman and Dominic Solanke looking to carry straight on from their dangerous displays against City.

Here's the team we reckon Frank could go with.

Things could have been very different for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer if it wasn't for an intervention at the eleventh hour

If it wasn't for an important intervention in 1998 then Ole Gunnar Solskjaer would have been playing for Tottenham Hotspur.

As it happened, the Norwegian would remain at Manchester United and cement himself into the club's history after scoring the winning goal in the 1999 Champions League final. That was, of course, the year that Sir Alex Ferguson's side secured a historic treble in one of the most memorable seasons in English football history.

Solskjaer would remain with United until 2007 when he retired at the age of 34, finishing his career at Old Trafford. However, rewind the clock to nine years prior and Solskjaer had to weigh up his options. Spurs had agreed the deal with United, but Sir Alex threw in a curveball at the eleventh hour.

"Everything was agreed. The two clubs had signed and were just waiting for me. It was that close," Solskjaer said in an interview in November 2010.

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"The gaffer called me into his office and closed the door. He said the conversation was just going to be between the two of us. He told me I would be a big part of his squad and he didn't want me to go.

"If he had said all the best in your career, I would have gone. But he wanted me to stay and so I signed. Hopefully I paid back the £5.5million that had been agreed with Spurs. But it is strange now to look at that fax."

United chief executive Martin Edwards and Tottenham chairman Sir Alan Sugar had both signed that fax to confirm the deal. It only needed Solskjaer's signature, but Fergie had other ideas.

From almost leaving the club, 12 months later he would become part of one of football's most iconic moments. The Norwegian netted against Bayern Munich in stunning circumstances.

His legendary status from that night in '99 was put to the test when he took on the role of caretaker manager in 2018 after the Red Devils had parted with Jose Mourinho.

He would go on to sign a permanent deal with the club in 2019 but was sacked in 2021 after a 4-1 defeat to Watford. Coincidentally, Michael Carrick, who is the current caretaker manager at United, took over as interim boss when Solskjaer left.

United wrote at the time: "It is with regret that we have reached this difficult decision. While the past few weeks have been disappointing, they should not obscure all the work he has done over the past three years to rebuild the foundations for long-term success. Ole leaves with our sincerest thanks for his tireless efforts as manager and our very best wishes for the future."

The two teams will do battle in Saturday's lunchtime kick-off in the Premier League, with Thomas Frank heading to Old Trafford with pressure to get a result for his struggling side.

After a transfer window that frustrated the fans the Tottenham Hotspur boss has been speaking about the Lewis family who own the club

Tottenham boss Thomas Frank believes the Lewis family are "very, very serious" owners after comments by the outgoing Fabio Paratici about his new bosses at Fiorentina.

Paratici left Spurs just three months after returning as a joint sporting director with Johan Lange, citing personal reasons for heading back to Italy for a prominent role at Fiorentina. During his unveiling in Florence this week, the 53-year-old said that "Fiorentina have a serious set of owners, a very serious set of owners who are of great value".

Some took as a dig at Spurs' owners, the Lewis family, and it comes after a transfer window that frustrated the Tottenham fans with a net spend of just £13million as Brennan Johnson was sold to Crystal Palace for £35million before Conor Gallagher's arrival from Atletico Madrid for a similar fee.

The north London club then signed 19-year-old Santos left-back Souza for £13million but failed to add anyone else to the squad despite January bringing nine new injuries to Frank's squad, a number of them long term, and the Dane admitting that more attacking options would help and suggesting loan signings as a way of fixing the problems temporarily.

When asked whether Tottenham have serious owners after Paratici's comments, Frank laughed.

"They have very, very serious owners. I understand why you need to ask that but I can only laugh about that," he said. "Yes, very, very serious.

“I speak to them. I’m together with them, so I’m not in doubt. I think it’s a little bit unfair to judge them on a January transfer window. That’s the only window where they’ve been in charge. Is this correct?"

It was pointed out that ENIC, the investment company the Lewis family owns, has been at the helm of Tottenham for 25 years before the next generation of the family, in siblings Vivienne and Charles Lewis and Vivienne's son-in-law Nick Beucher, took a more active interest in the running of the club last year.

"But I also think it’s fair to say that that was different before that. That’s everyone’s assumption, isn’t it?" said Frank. "I think it’s unfair to judge them after this window, I really, truly do.

"Judge them after the next window and the following window. I understand there is a lot of scrutiny about the club, that’s fair, but let’s be fair."

Frank has high hopes for Gallagher, who grabbed his first assist for the club last weekend with the cross for Dominic Solanke's spectacular scorpion kick goal against Manchester City.

"I think Conor has a lot of the bits we need to get to where we want. His character is unbelievable. He is a player who can build a top culture going forward," said the Spurs boss.

"His work-rate and how he can carry the team on his back, more or less, though it’s not only about one player. That situation [for Solanke's goal] is a fantastic situation, where he’s running very hard, winning the second ball in front of two players and then put a cross in and we scored from that.

"He’s impressed me and I think even though he came fit and available, he’s still adapting to the team. Of course, he played Premier League before but it’s different to La Liga. I also expect him to be even better when everyone knows him.

“I agree [that people underrate his technical ability]. For example his finishing is very technically good. He’s an excellent finisher."

This Saturday Spurs travel to Manchester United with Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven fit and available but Djed Spence "touch and go" to be involved after his calf injury.

Frank will come up against United's interim boss Michael Carrick just four months after the former Tottenham midfielder interviewed the Tottenham head coach for Amazon Prime Video Sport and the Dane is looking forward to seeing him again.

"First of all he came across as a fantastic person. That’s a key thing. Secondly he has had an excellent career, having done everything, won everything," he said.

“Then he had his time in Middlesbrough where he had a top experience in the Championship for a few years with all the mistakes we need to do as a head coach.

“With his history and experience from Man Utd, who knows what will happen in the summer. He definitely had a good start, that’s one thing, of course he needs to continue it and I wish him all the best, except on Saturday."

Wilson Odobert has praised Thomas Frank for improving his game and says he has built a relationship of trust with the Tottenham head coach.

After a first season at Spurs plagued by hamstring problems, the 21-year-old Frenchman has made 31 appearances during this campaign so far and contributed five assists and two goals. In recent weeks, Odobert appears to have found his confidence and grabbed three of those assists within back-to-back games against Borussia Dortmund and Burnley.

The winger, who has been playing on both the left and right flank of Frank's system as well as in one the two number 10 roles in the new 3-4-3 formation, has laid the praise for his improvements at the door of the Dane.

"We have a good relationship. He trusts me and I feel that trust. It's by having that close, trustable relationship that I'm able to feel freer out on the pitch and do things I'm capable of," Odobert said in an interview for Tottenham's matchday programme.

"We work a lot with the coach, we have a lot of videos, we all try to focus on our improvement and we work as much as we can to make things change.

"I think I have to keep improving, both as a player and as a person. It's true that in football we talk a lot about statistics at the moment, so I'm trying to improve those stats but, more than anything, to help the team and be someone who contributes to this team as much as possible.

"We know that we've been knocked out of the two domestic cup competitions, so in the Premier League we need to win as many matches as we can and get as high a position as possible in the table."

Odobert's performance against Dortmund was a key one and one of his best in a Tottenham shirt, with two assists, but he knows that he needs to build on nights like that.

"It was an important game for us," he said. "We had to give it everything, because we hadn't won for a little while to get that winning mentality back. It was a good performance from the team.

"But it was only one match and I'm not going to rest on my laurels. I want more, I want more for the team and I want more personally as well. But, right now, I'm focused on the team and getting better and getting the results we need. We're very aware we need to improve the results and make our fans happy."

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Odobert came through the youth system at PSG before making the move to Troyes, part of the City Football Group, before getting a transfer to newly-promoted Premier League side Burnley to play under the now Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany. The winger would then earn the switch to Tottenham and has now passed half a century of appearances for the north London side and credits those years in Paris as key in his early development.

"I trained in the PSG youth system when I was young. I learned a lot both technically and tactically which has helped me become who I am today, so it was a really good experience," he explained. "When I arrived (in England), I was just a kid. I was discovering living abroad for the first time. I wasn't in my country. Of course, it was a bit difficult at the beginning, with the adaptation of the language and being away from my parents.

"But now I've settled in well and adapting well to English, to the Premier League. I think I'm maturing and have come a long way."

The Tottenham Hotspur attacker has explained how the Dane has been helping him with his game and improving it this season

Wilson Odobert has praised Thomas Frank for improving his game and says he has built a relationship of trust with the Tottenham head coach.

After a first season at Spurs plagued by hamstring problems, the 21-year-old Frenchman has made 31 appearances during this campaign so far and contributed five assists and two goals. In recent weeks, Odobert appears to have found his confidence and grabbed three of those assists within back-to-back games against Borussia Dortmund and Burnley.

The winger, who has been playing on both the left and right flank of Frank's system as well as in one the two number 10 roles in the new 3-4-3 formation, has laid the praise for his improvements at the door of the Dane.

"We have a good relationship. He trusts me and I feel that trust. It's by having that close, trustable relationship that I'm able to feel freer out on the pitch and do things I'm capable of," Odobert said in an interview for Tottenham's matchday programme.

"We work a lot with the coach, we have a lot of videos, we all try to focus on our improvement and we work as much as we can to make things change.

"I think I have to keep improving, both as a player and as a person. It's true that in football we talk a lot about statistics at the moment, so I'm trying to improve those stats but, more than anything, to help the team and be someone who contributes to this team as much as possible.

"We know that we've been knocked out of the two domestic cup competitions, so in the Premier League we need to win as many matches as we can and get as high a position as possible in the table."

Odobert's performance against Dortmund was a key one and one of his best in a Tottenham shirt, with two assists, but he knows that he needs to build on nights like that.

"It was an important game for us," he said. "We had to give it everything, because we hadn't won for a little while to get that winning mentality back. It was a good performance from the team.

"But it was only one match and I'm not going to rest on my laurels. I want more, I want more for the team and I want more personally as well. But, right now, I'm focused on the team and getting better and getting the results we need. We're very aware we need to improve the results and make our fans happy."

Odobert came through the youth system at PSG before making the move to Troyes, part of the City Football Group, before getting a transfer to newly-promoted Premier League side Burnley to play under the now Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany. The winger would then earn the switch to Tottenham and has now passed half a century of appearances for the north London side and credits those years in Paris as key in his early development.

"I trained in the PSG youth system when I was young. I learned a lot both technically and tactically which has helped me become who I am today, so it was a really good experience," he explained. "When I arrived (in England), I was just a kid. I was discovering living abroad for the first time. I wasn't in my country. Of course, it was a bit difficult at the beginning, with the adaptation of the language and being away from my parents.

"But now I've settled in well and adapting well to English, to the Premier League. I think I'm maturing and have come a long way."

Dejan Kulusevski has provided a lengthy explanation of his recovery methods, with the Tottenham star approaching nine months out injured

Tottenham star Dejan Kulusevski has revealed what methods he is likely using to recover from injury. The 25-year-old has been missing because of a knee issue since May, with surgery required to fix the problem and there is currently no clear indication as to when he will be back.

Thomas Frank was asked about his recovery in early January with his response far from promising with regard to an imminent return to even training. He said: "It was not going forward as quickly as we thought but it's an injury we haven’t seen that much in football history.

"It's a complicated injury, where it’s important to make sure there’s no pain in the knee. That’s why he got an injection and it hopefully will help. So in three to four weeks’ time, he’ll be on the grass pain-free."

With that timeline fast approaching, Frank has been asked about Kulusevski since but has been unable to provide new updates. The Sweden international meanwhile, has been commenting on his injury and recently replied to an Instagram comment that jokingly asked if he was still alive.

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In another update to that social media platform, Kulusevski has uploaded a new post in collaboration with Flowlife, a Swedish health and wellness brand, where he discussed how important their recovery machines have been to him.

In the video, he says: "Recovery is very important, especially now when I get a little bit older. It's a lifestyle, I don't really focus on recovering because I do it every day. So for me, it's just a natural habit.

"I love to use the saunas. I like to sweat. After you sweat a lot, you need to hydrate a lot. If I have two hours free, I would go into the chamber and get extra oxygen, especially if I'm injured, it is important to recover more quickly. So I think it is a great tool for us athletes that we can use now.

"Honestly, the first time I used it, I felt so happy. As soon as you go out, it is like a burst of energy. You feel totally refreshed and it is an amazing feeling. But also like motivational, I feel like you have more energy in you so I experienced that and I think it is amazing for a human to feel energized."

It is unclear when the video was filmed but it seems very likely that Kulusevski has been using their products over the last nine months.

However, it unfortunately doesn't look to have thus far helped his major injury with Tottenham announcing their squad for the Champions League knockout stages and not including Kulusevski which suggests a return is not expected over the coming months.

Fellow long-term absentee James Maddison has also been left out with Radu Dragusin, Mathys Tel and Conor Gallagher named in place of injured stars Rodrigo Bentancur and Ben Davies have been removed with the departed Brennan Johnson also out.

Ademola Lookman was linked with a summer move to Tottenham Hotspur, however he has made a blistering start at his new club, days after the Spurs board were criticised over a lack of movement

Ademola Lookman made an instant impact on his Atletico Madrid debut, not long after being offered to Tottenham Hotspur.

The Nigerian scored and provided an assist for Diego Simeone's side as they took a giant stride towards reaching the Copa del Rey final after beating Real Betis 5-0 in the quarter-final. Lookman, who has Premier League experience with Everton, Fulham and Leicester, found himself on the market after Serie A side Atalanta made him available for transfer.

The Times previously reported in the summer that Tottenham had been offered the 28-year-old's services but he eventually joined the Spanish giants. It was claimed that Bayern Munich saw an approach on loan with the option to buy was knocked back for the attacker who scored 20 goals in all competitions last season.

It was said that Thomas Frank's side were looking for attacking reinforcements after bringing in Xavi Simons from RB Leipzig. However, fast-forward to the winter window, Spurs moved to sign Conor Gallagher from Atletico Madrid while seeing their efforts to sign Liverpool defender Andy Robertson in vain.

Lookman was again linked with Spurs but made the move to La Liga for a reported £30.3million, becoming the first English-born player to play in the Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga and Serie A.

The 28-year-old had a dream debut as he found the back of the net with a well-taken finish on the half-hour mark before providing the fourth goal for Antoine Griezmann. Lookman drove the counter-attack forward before threading it to the Frenchman, who found the top right corner.

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Lookman's superb start to life in Madrid will come as a blow to Spurs as they've had their own issues in attacking areas this term.

Dominic Solanke has returned from the treatment table to have an impact, including a brace in their 2-2 draw with Manchester City last time out. But with Richarlison out, Spurs' options are limited and their lack of business led to criticism of the club's hierarchy from club captain Cristian Romero.

The Argentine wrote on social media: "Great effort from all my teammates yesterday ,they were incredible.

"I wanted to be available to help them even though I wasn’t feeling well, especially since we only had 11 players available — unbelievable but true and disgraceful

"We’ll keep showing up and taking responsibility to turn this around, working hard and staying together.

"All that’s left is to thank all of you for being there and for always supporting us, the fans."

Frank was forced to address the post during his pre-match press conference ahead of tomorrow's clash with Manchester United.

However, the Dane dismissed claims of a revolt brewing from the players. He said:"Everyone here is ambitious. Everyone wants to win.

"Everyone wants to make sure we do the best in the league and we have a good opportunity in the Champions League that we need to hunt for everything we can.

“We’ve had some good performances, better, and in how they are running when they are behind, I see a team that is fighting, players fighting, and that’s a big thing.

"In the summer, we made two good signings in Xavi Simons and Mohammed Kudus, and a good loan in Joao Palhinha so it’s not as though we don’t want to loan players to strengthen the squad.

"And if you compare us to other top six clubs, we think it was a big signing with Conor Gallagher. I know the club is very ambitious and the owners are very ambitious and I have no doubt we will see that going forward."

Tottenham travel to take on Manchester United at Old Trafford in Saturday's early Premier League kick-off

Tottenham Hotspur are back in Premier League action this weekend as they look to build on a second half comeback against Manchester City.

A double from Dominic Solanke in the second half saw Spurs come back from a 2-0 half time deficit to secure a 2-2 draw.

It means that the team are unbeaten in their last four games in all competitions, although they are winless in the Premier League in their last six games. Tottenham sit in 14th in the Premier League table, nine points clear of the relegation zone.

They will look to improve their position when they travel to take on Manchester United at Old Trafford. Michael Carrick's team have won each of their last three games under their interim manager.

Before the encounter at Old Trafford, both managers have provided an update on their squad's fitness.

Tottenham continue to grapple with an extensive injury list. There remains uncertainty surrounding striker Solanke's fitness, after he was withdrawn during the stalemate with Man City following an ankle complaint.

After the match, the forward told Sky Sports: "I'll be good. I just rolled my ankle a little bit, but I'll be fine."

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Whilst Solanke's participation remains unclear, nine players are confirmed absentees for the fixture. Spurs will be missing Pedro Porro, Mohammed Kudus, Lucas Bergvall, Richarlison, Rodrigo Bentancur, Dejan Kulusevski, James Maddison, Ben Davies, and Kevin Danso, as the casualty list continues to mount.

On a more positive note for Spurs, manager Thomas Frank has confirmed that defenders Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero will be fit for the encounter with United. They could potentially be accompanied by full-back Djed Spence.

"So Micky is good, [he] trained today," the Spurs boss said. "He is available for selection for Saturday.

"So it's good. Djed Spence is getting closer. It will be a little bit touch and go, but there is a good chance that he will be ready."

For Manchester United, Carrick has also given an update, with Matthijs de Ligt confirmed as missing the match.

The centre-back has been absent for the previous 12 fixtures across all competitions with a back complaint. Carrick has confirmed that the clash against Tottenham will arrive 'too soon' for the defender.

"Matta [De Ligt], he's working his way back, taking good steps and improving," the United interim boss said in his pre-match press conference. "It's a little bit too soon at the moment but, hopefully, it won't be too long [before De Ligt is back]."

He could be accompanied on the sidelines by midfielder Mason Mount, who was unavailable for the victory over Fulham after sustaining a knock in training. It renders him a significant doubt for this weekend's clash.

"Probably, Mason [will be available] sooner [than De Ligt]," Carrick said. "He's not too far away really. We're hopeful it won't be too long."

Another player who will remain sidelined is full-back Patrick Dorgu. He sustained a hamstring problem during the match against Arsenal.

Speaking last week, Carrick confirmed the injury would keep him out for 'a few weeks'. The Dane had been an exceptional performer for United since the interim boss's appointment, with his absence representing a significant setback.

Thomas Frank has decided on Tottenham's three changes for the knockout stages of the Champions League and there is plenty to take from them

Tottenham have submitted their revised Champions League squad for the last 16 and hopefully beyond with Thomas Frank making all three changes that were permitted.

Spurs' European squad registration issues have been rumbling on for years and every season numerous players have to be left out as the north London outfit do not have enough club-trained players - they only currently have one of the required four - and they have too many non-locally trained players and association trained players to fit in to their 22-man squad.

It should be a 25-man squad but the club is penalised according to UEFA's rules for only have one club-trained player by needing to leave three spots open.

Frank decided to use all three changes he could for the knockout stages, with players who have already played in the competition for another side able to be registered. That meant Conor Gallagher could be added to the list along with Mathys Tel and Radu Dragusin to replace the injured duo Ben Davies and Rodrigo Bentancur as well as Brennan Johnson, who departed to Crystal Palace in the January transfer window.

Here are five things we learned about Frank's three choices...

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Kulusevski update

Essentially Frank's decision is a Dejan Kulusevski update in itself as it tells us that the Swede, despite being a key player for the club, is nowhere near being ready even for the last 16 clash in mid-March against either Juventus, Atletico Madrid, Galatasaray or Club Brugge.

That suggests something has not gone right since Frank last provided an update on the 25-year-old last month.

"We know it's a complicated injury. If there's one person who can accelerate that, it's Dejan. He's a top pro and has got a top mentality," admitted the Dane at the start of January. "The most important thing is to remove the pain in the knee. He got an injection to help that 10 days ago. We know in three to four weeks if it's settled and when it's settled, hopefully, he’ll be on the grass and from there, we’ll see what’s happening.

"It was not going forward as quickly as we thought but it's an injury we haven’t seen that much in football history, It's a complicated injury, where it’s important to make sure there’s no pain in the knee. That’s why he got an injection and it hopefully will help. So in three to four weeks’ time, he’ll be on the grass pain-free."

It is now four weeks since Frank spoke about the injection and three to four week timeframe and the fact that he has now left Kulusevski out of squad for next month's match and any further Champions League games does not bode well.

Kulusevski responded to an Instagram user last week who replied under one of his posts "I thought you died". The Swede replied: "Still alive."

Tottenham fans will have to wait as they did with Dominic Solanke and his ankle for when the pain finally subsides for the talented talisman.

Reward for Tel and Dragusin

Spare a thought for Tel, who signed for Spurs in a £30million summer move only to be left out of their Champions League squad.

The 20-year-old Frenchman then got back into the squad to cover the injured Solanke, didn't even start the match against Slavia Prague, and was instantly taken straight back out for the following game with Solanke back fit and had to watch the England international justify Frank's decision by scoring in both of the following European matches.

However, Tel has now got himself a spot back in the squad for the knockout stages and will be hoping to make up for lost time. First he needs to get more minutes in the Premier League with Frank not exactly throwing him much game time.

There was also a reward for Dragusin for all of the centre-back's efforts in battling back from his cruciate ligament injury with a year between starts for the Romania. Now he could make his second Champions League appearance five years after his only other one for Juventus.

The long-term injuries

Aside from Kulusevski, which of the long-term injured players Frank has taken out or continued to leave out gives us some indication over who will be back first and that appears to suggest Mohammed Kudus will be the next of the long-termers to return.

Kudus injured the tendon in his quad last month against Sunderland and was ruled out until after the international break at the end of March.

Rodrigo Bentancur is due back in April after a bad hamstring injury while James Maddison is continuing his rehabilitation after his cruciate ligament injury. Fans got excited after seeing the England international working with a ball again but you need only look at Dragusin to see how long the process still took after that point to know that Maddison will be aiming to be back just before the seasons ends if he and the medical department believe he is ready to.

Ben Davies' ankle injury looked awful and the Welsh left-back, who is out of contract in the summer, required surgery soon after so is not expected back any time in the near future.

If Yves Bissouma thought he might get back into the Champions League squad after his recent Premier League appearances then he would have discovered this week that it was not the case.

The Mali international has started Tottenham's past two matches and came off the bench at half-time in the game before simply because of the lack of available players in the centre of the pitch. However, some of those players have started to return and Gallagher has joined so the 29-year-old's game time will start to shrink again, barring further injuries.

If Tottenham do progress in the competition though, he could get Premier League minutes here and there as Frank will be forced to rotate his side.

Bissouma's contract is up in the summer but Spurs are believed to have an option to extend it by a year which they are likely to do to ensure they at least get some money for a player who cost them £30million originally from Brighton.

New youngsters out

There's no place for Souza in the Champions League squad which was likely with Destiny Udogie and Djed Spence able to play at left-back.

It was also entirely expected but there was no room for young January arrivals Mason Melia and James Wilson in Frank's Champions League squad.

The two 18-year-old strikers, signed from St Patrick's Athletic and Hearts respectively, would have had no expectation that they would be in the squad but it was confirmed with Friday's announcement. The duo and Souza cannot go on the B list of young players the club can draft in because you need to have been at the club for two years to do so.

Between them the pair have played almost 150 games of senior football so their time could well come for Spurs and both will likely get first team training time while hopefully bagging goals aplenty for the U21s in the remainder of the season.