The Back Four
Pochettino might toy with the notion of matching Conte with a back three on Saturday, but ultimately I’d expect him to deploy a more conventional back four. Unfortunately, Spurs will only start one defender in his best defensive position.
The one player who should begin the match in his usual spot is right back Kyle Walker. He got the night off against Monaco which should allow him to put an energetic 90 minutes again on Saturday. He’ll need to play an outstanding match to earn his club a result.
Pochettino will likely deploy Eric Dier and Kevin Wimmer as a makeshift central defensive pairing. You can bet that Chelsea’s attackers will light up at the idea of facing such a weak duo. Toby Alderweireld still isn’t ready to return from injury and his normal partner, Jan Vertonghen, is needed elsewhere.
Vertonghen will need to start the match as Tottenham’s left back. It’s not a position he prefers, but he does play that spot for Belgium on a regular basis. Danny Rose’s suspension and Ben Davies’ injury leave Tottenham without any choice to play at the other fullback spot.
One note here, is that it’s not entirely out of the question that Pochettino could elect to leave Wimmer on the bench. The Austrian was really poor against Monaco and might be playing his way out of White Hart Lane. If he ends up on the bench, it could allow Kyle Walker-Peters to make a surprising start at left back.