Kyle Walker-Peters may start for Tottenham at Arsenal
The injury to Kieran Trippier combined with Tottenham’s congested run of fixtures may hand Kyle Walker-Peters the start against Arsenal.
Mauricio Pochettino has made it quite clear he doesn’t intend to risk any players in Sunday’s North London Derby. If the Tottenham gaffer truly means that, he’ll need to hand Kyle Walker-Peters the start at right back against the Gunners.
It will be very interesting to see if Pochettino really has the nerve to hand his young Englishman a chance to play in such a hotly contested fixture. In many ways, the safer choice is to play Serge Aurier. Of course, the danger in that is playing the Ivory Coast international three full matches in the span of just eight days.
No one can accuse Pochettino of being afraid to play the 11 players he deems best for a particular match. Many managers would have been terrified to leave Christian Eriksen on the bench of a must-win Champions League fixture in front of their home fans. Instead, Pochettino coolly trusted the likes of Lucas Moura and Erik Lamela to tire out the opposition before inserting Eriksen into the match late in the second half.
Still, playing established squad members like Lucas or Lamela is a much different choice than throwing an inexperienced right back into the fire. Walker-Peters hasn’t made a Premier League appearance for Tottenham this season. He’s firmly entrenched as the club’s third choice right back behind Trippier and Aurier.
That doesn’t mean he isn’t talented. Many officials and fans believe he has more natural ability than either of the players he is backing up at the moment. He does, however, lack the physical strength and maturity required to handle intense Premier League attackers.
Fortunately, Arsenal prefer to reply on speed and skill rather than brawn. Walker-Peters’ inexperience could still be a massive problem, but it’s unlikely he’d be physically overwhelmed by the Gunners’ front line.
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Pochettino hasn’t spoken about Walker-Peters specifically ahead of Sunday’s derby, but it’s not hard to read between the lines and see he’s in contention for a place in the starting XI at Arsenal. It would be a big gamble from Pochettino, but it’s one he won’t hesitate to make if he believes starting Aurier would be his health in jeopardy. Tottenham’s manager understands this season is a marathon, not a sprint.