Toby Alderweireld will start the season on the bench for Tottenham

Many people expected Toby Alderweireld to start the season in Manchester United’s starting XI. In reality, he’ll begin the campaign on Tottenham’s bench.

There are only seven days left in the summer transfer window and all indications are pointing to Toby Alderweireld staying with Tottenham. Ironically, moving to Manchester United might have allowed him to start the 2018/19 season in the starting lineup for Jose Mourinho. As it stands, it’s almost certain he’ll begin the year on Mauricio Pochettino’s bench.

The good news for Spurs fans is that Alderweireld is set to join up with the squad when they return from their United States tour. He’s told fans he will start training with Spurs as soon as this weekend. That doesn’t preclude a last-minute move to Old Trafford, but it certainly doesn’t improve the odds for a transfer.

That brings up the interesting question of what role Alderweireld will play for Spurs. Depending on what you believe, Pochettino held him out of the lineup for a significant portion of last season due either to injury or a personal conflict with the talented Belgian.

No matter what, Pochettino has every reason to favour Davinson Sanchez and Jan Vertonghen as his starting pairing when the Premier League season opens. Sanchez played in the World Cup for Colombia, but he did participate in several of the club’s matches in America. He may not be completely match fit, but he’s certainly the closest of the three potential starters.

Assuming Pochettino plays four at the back, that only leaves one other starting spot in the central defence. Expect Vertonghen to beat out his countryman. He was, by all objective measures, the better player last season. Vertonghen didn’t take part in the US tour, but neither did Alderweireld. Assuming both show equal match fitness when they begin preseason work this weekend, expect the left-footed player to get the starting nod.

That doesn’t mean Alderweireld is going to be glued to the bench all season. If nothing else, Pochettino has proven he will not hesitate to insert players who are training at high levels into the starting XI. Alderweireld will have numerous opportunities to overtake Sanchez or force Pochettino to play three central defenders. It won’t surprise anyone to see him work his way into the lineup pretty quickly if he’s truly fit.

Tottenham fans shouldn’t panic about Alderweireld’s status at the club until the Premier League season is up and running. If Pochettino keeps him on the bench through September, there’s a serious problem. No one should overreact to Pochettino easing Alderweireld into the lineup slowly.