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Tottenham’s projected starting XI vs. Manchester City

By Rucker Haringey

MOSCOW, RUSSIA - SEPTEMBER 27: Mauricio Pochettino manager of Tottenham Hotspur looks on prior to the UEFA Champions League Group E match between PFC CSKA Moskva and Tottenham Hotspur FC atat the CSKA Arena stadium on September 27, 2016 in Moscow. (Photo by Epsilon/Getty Images)
MOSCOW, RUSSIA - SEPTEMBER 27: Mauricio Pochettino manager of Tottenham Hotspur looks on prior to the UEFA Champions League Group E match between PFC CSKA Moskva and Tottenham Hotspur FC atat the CSKA Arena stadium on September 27, 2016 in Moscow. (Photo by Epsilon/Getty Images) /
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LONDON, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 18: Didier Ndong of Sunderland and Jan Vertonghen of Tottenham Hotspur battle for possession during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland at White Hart Lane on September 18, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 18: Didier Ndong of Sunderland and Jan Vertonghen of Tottenham Hotspur battle for possession during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland at White Hart Lane on September 18, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images) /

The Defense

Tottenham’s defense will face a huge task in the form of Manchester City’s offensive juggernaut. Leading the line for the Citizens will be Spurs nemesis Sergio Aguero. Pochettino will deploy a strong defense in an effort to keep him under wraps.

To the shock of absolutely no one, Hugo Lloris will start in goal for the club. He’s the captain for both club and country, and he has the ability to keep his club in the match single-handedly if need be. Spurs will hope that isn’t his role Sunday, but it’s a comfort to have him has the last line of defense.

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Directly in front of Lloris, Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen will form the central defensive partnership. Each man is off to a solid start to the campaign, but they’ll need to up their performances another level to deal with the City attack.

At right back, Kyle Walker will look to build on his strong start to the season. He’ll be important for both the Tottenham attack and Spurs’ defense. He’ll be expected to provide width when his club have the ball, and to race back in defense when the situation calls for it.

Left back is really the only spot up for grabs. The conservative move would be to give Ben Davies another start. Danny Rose has missed several matches due to injury and only returned to training late this week. My guess is Pochettino will be willing to gamble though. Look for Rose to finally return to the starting XI.

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