Sports Mole

Liverpool could reportedly attempt to hijack Tottenham Hotspur's proposed deal for Bournemouth defender Marcos Senesi.

The Argentina international will bring an end to his four-year stay on the south coast when his contract expires at the end of the season.

Spurs are in pole position to secure his signature, having already reached an agreement in principle over a free transfer.

The proposed deal is contingent on Tottenham coming out on top in their relegation fight with West Ham United.

Liverpool weighing up Senesi contract offer

Roberto De Zerbi's side are currently sitting a point above the drop zone after recording back-to-back wins over Wolverhampton Wanderers and Aston Villa.

However, Spurs face a fresh obstacle in their quest to bring Senesi to north London this summer, with talkSPORT reporting that Liverpool are keeping tabs on the player's situation.

The report claims that the Reds are weighing up whether to hijack Tottenham's bid by making a contract offer of their own.

Senesi is well-known to Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes, who brought the centre-back to Bournemouth from Feyenoord in the summer of 2022.

Do Liverpool need central defensive reinforcements?

Any potential move from Liverpool is said to depend on the future of Ibrahima Konate, who is out of contract at the end of the season.

The two parties are yet to reach an agreement, although Konate revealed last month that he was close to signing a new deal.

If Konate stays, he would look to continue his centre-back partnership with Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk.

Jeremy Jacquet is set to arrive from Rennes this summer and will provide competition for a starting berth next season, along with young defender Giovanni Leoni, who has spent his first season at Anfield on the sidelines.

Even if Joe Gomez leaves, Liverpool would likely look to sign centre-back cover rather than a first-choice option like Senesi.

Richarlison has now scored 10 or more goals in five different Premier League seasons, the joint most of any Brazilian player in the division's history.

Roberto De Zerbi took charge of Tottenham Hotspur for the fourth time on Sunday, when he led his side out against Aston Villa away from home.

The Londoners quickly took the lead through Conor Gallagher in the 12th minute, before Richarlison doubled their advantage in the 25th minute.

Spurs left with all three points despite Villa scoring in second-half stoppage time, and the result moved them into 17th place, with their tally of 37 points one more than 18th-placed West Ham United with three matchweeks remaining.

While the win was all that mattered, Richarlison hit a personal milestone as his goal was his 10th in the league this season, and he now shares the record with Roberto Firmino for the Brazilian with the most Premier League campaigns with at least 10 goals scored (five).

Tottenham Hotspur or West Ham: Who will be relegated?

With just a point separating Spurs from the drop zone, their victory against Villa must not be another false dawn if they are to avoid being overtaken by West Ham.

The Hammers still have to play Arsenal, Newcastle United and Leeds United this season, and while all three fixtures could be challenging, Leeds and Newcastle will have no incentive to be at their best when they clash.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR FIXTURES

- Leeds United (H) May 11

- Chelsea (A) May 19

- Everton (H) May 24

As for Spurs, they face Leeds, Chelsea and Everton, and there is an argument that they have a more favourable fixture list than the Hammers.

Chelsea will be keen to do all they can to send Tottenham to the Championship given their rivalry with the Lilywhites, but the Blues have lost their last five Premier League games, and they may also be distracted by the upcoming FA Cup final on May 16.

Why Spurs' win against Aston Villa could be springboard to safety

There is no doubt that Tottenham's squad possesses immense quality, though many of their stars are currently injured, while others have failed to show the best version of themselves.

The players must be criticised for the fact that Spurs are in a relegation battle, but it would be understandable if they lacked the confidence needed to rediscover their best form.

Tottenham's win against Villa was their second in a row, and the club are also unbeaten in three games, so perhaps the momentum they have gathered will help propel them to safety.

Head coach Roberto De Zerbi has claimed that "only losers cry" as Tottenham Hotspur prepare to face Aston Villa on Sunday evening.

Despite last weekend's 1-0 win at Wolverhampton Wanderers, Spurs remain two points adrift of safety in the Premier League table.

Next up for Spurs is a showdown with Villa in the West Midlands, a game which takes place 26 hours after the conclusion of West Ham United's trip to Brentford.

All eyes will be on that game with Spurs facing the prospect of being five points adrift from safety if the Hammers prevail at the Gtech Community Stadium.

Nevertheless, De Zerbi has demanded that his Spurs squad show positivity before and during the game with Villa, insisting that it would 'not be a miracle' if they record three points.

De Zerbi issues Spurs rallying cry

As quoted by The Guardian, the Italian said: "The most important challenge now is to silence the voice inside of us, inside the players, the staff and the fans. This voice can produce negative thoughts.

"The voice says: ‘We are unlucky, we have too many injuries, we lost Xavi Simons – one of our best players in the last two games – our medical staff is not good enough, the pitch of the stadium is not good, the pitch of the training ground is not good. It is impossible to win two or three games in a row because we have not won too many games in 2026.’

“It is all negative things. And it is rubbish. If Tottenham win in Villa Park, it is not a miracle. We have the quality to win. If Solanke and Xavi are injured, we can play with [Randal] Kolo Muani, Mathys Tel, Richarlison and they are not worse players. They are different as characters but are very good players. We have Pedro Porro, we have Udogie, we have Micky van de Ven, we have [Rodrigo] Bentancur, we have Palhinha, we have [Conor] Gallagher.

"I have heard: ‘It is impossible, we are crying and we are relegated.’ But no. Not yet. We have to die on the pitch and to die on the pitch, we have to lose the game. Before we lose the game we have to play, we have to fight.

"It is a tough moment but the losers cry. The losers think negative. I don’t want people close to me crying or thinking in a different way to me.”

Does De Zerbi have Spurs squad on board?

Although Spurs did not showcase their true quality against Wolves, a scrappy 1-0 win courtesy of a late goal may be what is required to strengthen the resolve in the ranks.

Conceding so late in a 2-2 draw with Brighton & Hove Albion had the potential to make De Zerbi's job harder than it already was, but Spurs now seem to be heading in the right direction.

Injuries could play their part, yet De Zerbi and his Spurs squad will have faith that they can upset a Villa side who will have one eye on the second leg of their Europa League semi-final against Nottingham Forest four days later.

Relegation-threatened Tottenham Hotspur will look to boost their survival hopes in Sunday's Premier League meeting with Aston Villa.

Unai Emery's charges are sitting in fifth place in the Premier League table, while Spurs are languishing below the dotted line in 18th spot.

Here, Sports Mole provides details of how to tune into the top-flight encounter.

What time does Aston Villa vs. Spurs kick off?

The game will get underway at 7pm on Sunday evening.

Where is Aston Villa vs. Spurs being played?

Sunday's contest will take place at Villa Park, which can hold over 43,000 spectators.

Villa prevailed by a 2-0 scoreline when the two sides last met at Villa Park in May 2025.

How to watch Aston Villa vs. Spurs in the UK

TV channels

UK viewers will be able to watch the Premier League encounter on TNT Sports 1 and TNT Sports Ultimate.

Streaming

Fans with the relevant TNT Sports subscription will also be able to watch the action via Sky Go, Virgin TV Go or Amazon Prime Video.

Alternatively, TNT Sports subscribers can watch via the HBO Max website and app, the latter of which is available on a whole host of devices, including phones, computers, tablets, TVs and game consoles.

Highlights

There will be match highlights on the TNT Sports Football YouTube channel and on the HBO Max platform.

There will also be highlights shown on Match of the Day from 10.30pm on BBC One on Sunday night. The Match of the Day highlight package should also be available to watch on the BBC Sport website.

What is at stake for Aston Villa and Spurs?

This will be the third meeting between the two sides this season after Villa claimed 2-1 victories in Premier League and FA Cup games at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The Villans, who will have one eye on Thursday's semi-final second leg against Nottingham Forest, are sitting in fifth spot and seven points clear of Brentford in sixth position, leaving them on the verge of securing Champions League qualification.

While Villa will be targeting a fifth consecutive home win in all competitions, Tottenham will be aiming to claim back-to-back victories after picking up three points for the first time in 2026 in last Saturday's outing against Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Aston Villa have the chance to secure a top-five Premier League finish and Champions League football when they host Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday afternoon.

On the other hand, the Lilywhites will rise out of the relegation zone with a win if West Ham United drop points at Brentford; here, Sports Mole rounds up all of the latest team news.

ASTON VILLA vs. TOTTENHAM

ASTON VILLA

Out: Amadou Onana (calf), Boubacar Kamara (knee)

Doubtful: None

Sports Mole's predicted XI: Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Maatsen; Tielemans, Bogarde; Bailey, Rogers, Sancho; Watkins

TOTTENHAM

Out: Xavi Simons (ACL), Mohammed Kudus (thigh), Dejan Kulusevski (knee), Wilson Odobert (knee), Cristian Romero (knee), Ben Davies (ankle), Guglielmo Vicario (hernia), Dominic Solanke (thigh)

Doubtful: Destiny Udogie (knock)

Aston Villa will be bidding to end a 22-year streak when they face Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday evening.

With four matches remaining, Villa sit in fifth place in the Premier League table, holding an eight-point advantage in the race to secure Champions League qualification.

Although that could have changed come kickoff at Villa Park, Unai Emery and his players know that one win may be enough to guarantee a top-five finish.

Nevertheless, Villa welcome Spurs to their home ground having suffered successive 1-0 defeats at Fulham and Nottingham Forest respectively.

Villa will also be ending a 22-year streak if they are able to get back on track against Roberto De Zerbi's improving outfit.

© Imago

What streak can Aston Villa end against Spurs?

As Villa recorded a 2-0 victory over Spurs in last season's corresponding fixture, they are attempting to prevail in successive home league encounters against this opponent for the first time since November 2004.

While Spurs head into this contest having lost six of the last 10 top-flight encounters against Villa, they have only suffered five defeats in the most recent 34 such fixtures.

However, it is worth noting that Villa and Spurs are approaching a Premier League record, with none of the last 21 fixtures between these sides ending in a draw.

Only Chelsea and Crystal Palace, between September 1997 and February 2024, have gone longer without a stalemate, that streak going as long as 26 fixtures.

Meanwhile, Spurs will be attempting to win back-to-back matches in the Premier League for the first time since August, when they beat Burnley and Manchester City respectively.

Aston Villa vs. Spurs Premier League match preview

Ahead of Sunday’s Premier League clash between Aston Villa and relegation-threatened Tottenham Hotspur, hear what the Sports Mole team have to say about the upcoming battle.

Ben Knapton, Site Coordinator: “Spurs have now come to expect the worst”

I think it was the best four minutes of Tottenham fans' season at Molineux, in between that [Joao] Palhinha goal and then Callum Wilson getting the winner for West Ham, a wonderful four minutes for Tottenham fans until the inevitable happened.

I think Spurs fans have just become numb to it now. The worst-case scenario has happened this season in this game, it's going to happen again in this game.

It doesn't take away from the absolute devastation of Callum Wilson scoring that last-minute winner for West Ham last weekend, but I do feel like Spurs fans have just now come to expect the worst, not just in this season, but as a famous Italian defender said, ‘it's the history of the Tottenham’, and I feel like now Spurs fans are, not embracing it, but they're accepting it, especially in this season.

The last two performances have been such an improvement on what happened under Thomas Frank and Igor Tudor, but the biggest hammer blow for me wasn't the West Ham winner, it was the injuries that happened after that.

Xavi Simons. ACL. Out for the season. Out for the World Cup. I spoke last week about how he could be absolutely huge for Spurs under [Roberto] De Zerbi. He had that great goal and great assist against Brighton, and then as he's starting to come into form, he's out for what looks like the rest of the calendar year, which is just absolutely devastating for him.

[Dominic] Solanke as well came off injured against Wolves. Looks like his hamstring's gone. He might be a few weeks. There were also reports a couple of days ago that [Randal] Kolo Muani had suffered an injury. Those were wide off the mark, thankfully, but it would be something to get three season-ending injuries in attack when they've already got [Dejan] Kulusevski out for the entire year [and James] Maddison's only just back.

So what can they do now to replace them? De Zerbi in his press conference named some quite bizarre solutions. They do have Kolo Muani fit right now, Mathys Tel is fit. Do you risk Maddison? Do you give him just a few minutes here and there in this game? He also mentioned you could play [Lucas] Bergvall on the left and Souza on the right, Souza on the left as well.

Just imagining for Spurs fans seeing a Souza, Kolo Muani and Bergvall front three – you just can't fathom that. Looking at where they were at the start of the season, beating Man City away and also giving PSG a good run for their money in the Super Cup, you're lost for words when you are thinking about this Tottenham season.

Even though it was a devastating way to end it at Wolves, the positives were there in terms of the win itself, in terms of the performance. Interestingly, since De Zerbi took charge, Spurs have had the most press sequences and possession won in the final third, so he's stamping his game plan on Spurs straight away, and the players are embracing it.

It remains to be seen how they can replace Simons and Solanke. I might be tempting fate, I do think things are at least looking up from a playing style perspective.

Ben Knapton, Site Coordinator: “You can’t expect Maddison to be the saviour”

With [Antonin] Kinsky, obviously Vicario having that hernia helps. He could have played his last game for Spurs. Already looks like he might be going to Inter Milan at the end of the season.

The way that Kinsky has bounced back from that (performance vs. Atletico Madrid in the Champions League), because there was that last-minute save in the Wolves game, I think in the 90th minute, that Joao Gomes free kick, and Kinsky springs across his line and keeps it out. It's a brilliant save technically, but just in terms of the context of the game, the context of the relegation fight, it makes it an even bigger save.

Seeing how he was mobbed by his teammates and the reaction he got from the fans after the game. It's a wonderful story for such a young goalkeeper. Kinsky is only in his early twenties. He could have even 20 years left in him as a goalkeeper, so it is going to be really interesting to see what happens with him this summer.

If Spurs do go down, will he be then number one in the Championship? If they stay up, will he be their number one in the Premier League? But of course, one step at a time with him, and that save last weekend, even if you are not a Spurs fan, you just can't help but smile at that given what he went through.

With Maddison, it's a really interesting one because he is still not been risked yet. I think there were concerns whether he would play again, whether he would even play a single minute of the campaign. I don't think you can put too much pressure on him at all.

We know what he can do when he's fully fit, but his recovery's gone quicker than expected, maybe not fast-tracked back into the first team. I don't think Spurs have pushed him back before he's ready. I think obviously they've done their due diligence.

He's not in the squad because they're just trying to make up the numbers, he's in because if needed he could make an impact. but I don't think you can expect him to be the saviour. That's putting too much pressure on a player who, on his day, is magnificent creatively. He could thrive like Xavi Simons did for a short space of time in that De Zerbi system, but for me, the biggest miss has been Kulusevski.

I love watching Kulusevski as a player, and it's just been such a mystery as to what's happened to him. It's been setback after setback for him. Having him out, having [Mohammed] Kudus out as well for so long, and Maddison, their creativity has just plummeted until Xavi Simons started to improve against Brighton before his ACL.

You can't put that pressure on Maddison, but if he can get maybe even just two or three appearances under his belt and just maybe lift the fans, lift the team, even if he can't get any direct contributions, then that could be a small factor. You never know.

Oliver Thomas, Senior Reporter: “Another frustrating afternoon for Tottenham”

I think for me, yes, they've beaten Wolves and they've lifted the spirits a little bit. Performances have improved slightly under De Zerbi, but for me, I'm not really convinced enough to suggest that they'll climb out of danger at the moment.

There's still, as a club, in a real mess, and of course, injuries have not helped their cause at all. That win over Wolves was overshadowed by those injuries to Xavi Simons and Solanke. Spurs now without arguably their most creative player and their first-choice centre forward, so that's a huge blow. I think Xavi Simons in particular, considering the impact he's had in recent games.

People keep saying that this is a good group of players at Tottenham when everyone's fit, there's quality in this Spurs side, but I've struggled to see where that is really. I know they've had these injury issues, but based on the evidence of this season and the performances of the players who have played regularly, overall, it's a surprise to see Spurs as a club down in the bottom three, but it's not a surprise really to see this Spurs team in the drop zone.

They've just been so poor overall and they're still in real trouble at the moment. I personally would be surprised to see Spurs win at Villa. I think it's a tough game, even if Villa do decide to rest some players with one eye on the Europa League. I think it could be another frustrating afternoon for Tottenham this weekend.

Matt Law, Football Editor: “It's difficult to know what you're going to get with Villa”

That’s a good point from Oliver that (Villa’s Europa League focus) will potentially help Tottenham, the fact that (Sunday’s game) does come in between those two big games.

Villa are sitting quite pretty in that top five at the moment. I know there's a lot to happen. I know Brighton and Bournemouth and a couple of others have got big performances in them and big results, and it's not certain that they will finish there, but I thought Villa were really poor last time out against Fulham.

Fulham played well in the game, but I’ve thought that a lot about Villa. I've seen quite a lot of Villa. There's games where they're brilliant and they move the ball really quickly and it's very exciting, and then there's other games where they're so poor and they create so little.

It's difficult to know what you're going to get with them. It does look like Unai Emery is going to be staying now. He's fallen out of contention in terms of the Man United talks. He got linked with Real Madrid at a time, but it doesn't seem like he's in the argument for that.

I think that's a positive that there's not much uncertainty going into next season in terms of the managerial, because if you took him out of that club - I think they've got good players, don't get me wrong - but I think they would struggle to progress as they'd like.

Ollie Watkins, 10 of his 11 goals have come since the start of December, so he is in decent form, obviously looking like he probably will go to the World Cup, certainly if he finishes the season well.

I think it's a strange game really, because it means more to Tottenham than it does to Villa. Tottenham have lost six of their last ten against Villa, but won four. It's a strange game really.

You mentioned earlier about me saying about Tottenham not going down. I'm struggling to see them staying up now, but I'm still going to stick with it. I'm going to stick with saying that they will stay up and West Ham will go down.

It’s a big weekend, isn't it? West Ham play Brentford away at 3:00pm on Saturday – that's a really big game there. If Brentford can do Tottenham a favour and then Tottenham could get a big result themselves, then they'll be in a decent enough position going into the last games. Big game for both sides, obviously more so for Tottenham.

Tottenham Hotspur will hope to secure back-to-back Premier League wins when they travel to Villa Park to face Aston Villa on Sunday.

Spurs remain in the relegation zone in 18th place and know they need victories, along with favours elsewhere, to preserve their top-flight status.

It has been a season wrecked by injuries for the North London club, and their misfortune continues at the very moment they are fighting to escape danger.

After Xavi Simons was ruled out for the remainder of the campaign with an anterior cruciate ligament injury suffered against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Roberto De Zerbi has now confirmed that Spurs will also be without Dominic Solanke for the trip to Villa Park.

De Zerbi provides Dominic Solanke injury update

© Imago

Solanke was substituted before half-time as Tottenham secured their first Premier League victory of 2026 with a 1-0 win over Wolves last weekend.

It has been suggested that the 28-year-old striker may have suffered a grade-two hamstring injury, a setback that could place the rest of his season in doubt.

De Zerbi declined to go into detail on the issue, confirming only that the England forward will miss Sunday’s clash.

“I don’t know yet. For Villa, no, for sure. And then we will see,” De Zerbi said, as quoted by Football London.

More injury concerns for Tottenham

© Imago / IPS

Spurs are also expected to be without first-choice goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario, who remains unavailable after missing the last three matches following hernia surgery.

The Italian has been linked with a move away from the club, and his prolonged absence only adds further uncertainty around his future.

Destiny Udogie also missed the win over Wolves with a muscular problem, but the defender could return this weekend, even if a start is not guaranteed.

Meanwhile, James Maddison, who has not featured this season because of an ACL injury, has returned to training, although it remains unclear whether he is ready for competitive minutes.

Villa will be determined to avoid a third consecutive defeat this weekend, while Spurs must also overcome the memory of a 2-1 loss in the reverse fixture earlier this season.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Roberto De Zerbi must make a double attacking change for Sunday's Premier League scrap with Aston Villa at Villa Park.

The Lilywhites' 1-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers last weekend - their first Premier League triumph of 2026 - came at a huge cost, as Xavi Simons suffered a season-ending ACL injury and Dominic Solanke sustained a hamstring issue.

Solanke's problem may not prove so devastating, though, as his replacement Richarlison is averaging 0.72 goal involvements per 90 minutes in the 2025-26 Premier League, having claimed nine goals and four assists in 1,615 minutes.

The Brazilian and Mathys Tel will almost certainly be promoted to the XI in place of Solanke and Simons, joining Conor Gallagher and Randal Kolo Muani in the Lilywhites' front three.

James Maddison has been an unused substitute in both of Tottenham's last two games, but it is far too soon to consider the England international for first-team starts.

Yves Bissouma has quickly gained De Zerbi's trust, but following Joao Palhinha's heroic winner off the bench against Wolves, the Portuguese could now join Rodrigo Bentancur in the double pivot.

In brighter injury news, Destiny Udogie has recovered from a knock that ruled him out of the Wolves win, so the Italian could displace Djed Spence in an otherwise settled defence.

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:

Kinsky; Porro, Danso, Van de Ven, Udogie; Bentancur, Palhinha; Kolo Muani, Gallagher, Tel; Richarlison

> Click here to see how Aston Villa could line up against Tottenham

Check out Sports Mole's video preview for Aston Villa vs. Tottenham:

On opposite ends of 1-0 scorelines during their most recent encounters, Champions League-chasing Aston Villa and relegation-battling Tottenham Hotspur meet at Villa Park in Sunday's Premier League contest.

The Lions return to domestic action after a narrow loss to Nottingham Forest in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final, while Spurs' one-goal triumph at Wolverhampton Wanderers saw the Lilywhites belatedly win a Premier League game in 2026.

Match preview

In between Joao Palhinha's close-range winner against Wolves and Callum Wilson's last-gasp strike for West Ham United against Everton, Tottenham fans rejoiced in the best four minutes of their Premier League season in 2026 - four minutes in which their side were out of the relegation zone.

The Irons' dramatic 2-1 victory over the Toffees means that it is still as you were in the Premier League table, where the 18th-placed Lilywhites are two points below Nuno Espirito Santo's side, but the flicker of survival hope for Spurs is now shining that little bit brighter.

Four points from their last two Premier League games is as many as the visitors had managed in their previous 13 top-flight matches before that, and Roberto De Zerbi's playing style is already having a major impact; Spurs are averaging more pressed sequences and possession won in the final third per game than they did under Thomas Frank or Igor Tudor.

Consigning their 15-game Premier League winless run to history, Tottenham can now earn back-to-back top-flight victories for just the second time this season, after overcoming Burnley and Manchester City during the opening two gameweeks of the campaign.

Furthermore, only six teams have collected more Premier League points on the road than Tottenham this season, as the Lilywhites have won 23 of their 34 on rival territory; eerily, they have also scored and conceded 23 goals away from home too.

Unable to replicate Tottenham's 1-0 away win in either the Premier League or Europa League, Aston Villa enter gameweek 35 at risk of suffering three straight losses in all tournaments - a fate that has not befallen them once in the current season.

Ex-Spurs full-back Ryan Sessegnon made the telling contribution in last weekend's top-flight reverse to Fulham, before Chris Wood's spot kick put Forest ahead at half time in their Europa League semi-final, which resumes in front of a fervent Villa Park atmosphere next Thursday night.

The Lions' hopes of qualifying for the Champions League via Europa League success now hinge on a second-leg comeback, but as the hosts are eight points clear of sixth-placed Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League, a top-five finish could be sealed on Sunday.

Indeed, Villa will be guaranteed to play in the 2026-27 Champions League if they beat Tottenham, Brighton drop points against Newcastle United and Bournemouth fail to beat Crystal Palace, and their four-game winning run on home soil stands them in very good stead.

Coincidentally, the Villans have also prevailed in each of their last four matches against Tottenham across all competitions, including a pair of 2-1 away triumphs in the league and FA Cup earlier this season.

Aston Villa Premier League form:

Aston Villa form (all competitions):

Tottenham Hotspur Premier League form:

Tottenham Hotspur form (all competitions):

Team News

Even though Tottenham won at Wolves, it would not have been a Spurs game in 2026 without some kind of disaster striking, and last weekend's devastating moment was Xavi Simons suffering a season-ending and World Cup-crushing ACL injury.

The Dutchman - whose serious problem comes just as he was beginning to thrive in De Zerbi's system - is one of two fresh blows for the Lilywhites, who have also lost Dominic Solanke to a hamstring concern that could rule him out for the rest of the season too.

Mohammed Kudus (thigh), Dejan Kulusevski (knee), Wilson Odobert (knee), Cristian Romero (knee), Ben Davies (ankle) and Guglielmo Vicario (hernia) remain on the sidelines, but Destiny Udogie - absent at Molineux with a knock - is at least back in contention.

Also beset by a fresh injury setback, Aston Villa lost Amadou Onana to a calf injury against Forest on Thursday evening, just a few days after the midfielder was forced to miss the defeat to Fulham with a knee concern.

Emery has confirmed that the Belgian will be absent on Sunday, although he could not offer a recovery timeline, while Boubacar Kamara (knee) is the hosts' only other injury worry.

With a top-five finish almost set in stone, Emery may choose to prioritise the Europa League and reshuffle his resources on Sunday, offering starts to the likes of Ian Maatsen, Jadon Sancho and Onana's likely replacement Lamare Bogarde.

Aston Villa possible starting lineup:

Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Maatsen; Tielemans, Bogarde; Bailey, Rogers, Sancho; Watkins

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:

Kinsky; Porro, Danso, Van de Ven, Udogie; Bentancur, Palhinha; Kolo Muani, Gallagher, Tel; Richarlison

We say: Aston Villa 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur

The losses of Solanke and Simons may not prove fatal for Tottenham, as the former's replacement Richarlison is on 13 goal contributions for the Premier League season, and Spurs have evidently been galvanised by De Zerbi's methods.

As Villa have one eye on the Europa League and have been found wanting in front of goal in their last two games, the visitors could claim a hard-earned point, albeit one that will not be enough to drag them to safety.