Tottenham v Roma: 5 Spurs stars with the most at stake

LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 15: Vincent Janssen of Totteham Hotspur celebrates scoring his sides fourth goal with his Tottenham Hotspur team mates during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and AFC Bournemouth at White Hart Lane on April 15, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images) /

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3. Kieran Trippier

You may be surprised to see a likely member of Tottenham’s starting XI find his way onto this list. While Trippier will almost certainly start the season as Pochettino’s first-choice right back, his future with Spurs is not a total certainty.

Trippier needs to play well this preseason to reaffirm the club’s decision to hand him the starting job. If he looks shaky against a club like Roma, it could push Spurs into the summer transfer market. Ostensibly that would be to purchase a backup player, but things can change quickly under Pochettino.

The best thing for Trippier to do for his Spurs career would be to put in a couple of real commanding performances before the real season begins. That could be enough to convince Daniel Levy and company that he doesn’t need any competition. Kyle Walker-Peters might be ready to challenge him in a season or two, but he won’t take the starting job this year.

Kieran Trippier doesn’t need to be great against Roma, but he needs to look like an unquestioned member of the starting XI. In particular, he’ll need to look extremely confident on the defensive end of the pitch. That’s where even the most optimistic Spurs supporters have their doubts.

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