Cristian Stellini may have a number of injuries to contend with at present but Tottenham's acting head coach must find a way of changing his team for next Sunday's trip to Newcastle. Having the opportunity to move level on points with the Magpies after they had lost 3-0 at Aston Villa in the early kick-off on Saturday, Spurs passed up the chance following a last-minute 3-2 defeat against Bournemouth.
One player who could be in contention to come into the team is Arnaut Danjuma after an impressive cameo against his former club. Introduced in the 58th minute as Stellini made an attacking change moments after they had found themselves 2-1 down, the Netherlands international restored parity two minutes from time but Dango Ouattara was to have the final say on proceedings.
Potentially making a change in an attacking sense to bring Danjuma in, Stellini may be forced to make an alteration at the back following Clement Lenglet's early exit in the Bournemouth defeat. The severity of the issue the Frenchman sustained in the first half will become clearer prior to Sunday's game at Newcastle and that could in turn further limit Spurs' defensive numbers.
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Davinson Sanchez would usually be the player to come in and start in Lenglet's place but that may all change following the chorus of boos he received in his 23 minutes on the pitch. Playing a part in Bournemouth's second goal after Marcus Tavernier got the better of him before the Spurs man then inadvertently prodded the ball through for Dominic Solanke when trying to atone for his play, the Colombian was booed by thousands of fans inside the stadium on a couple of occasions after the goal when he was in possession of the ball.
An uncomfortable moment for Sanchez, his Tottenham teammates and many watching on, Stellini elected to take off the ex-Ajax defender in the 58th minute and replace him with Danjuma. The centre-back looked totally distraught when he took his place on the bench and Stellini, his coaching staff and players have a big job over the coming days in terms of supporting Sanchez and keeping his head up.
Switching to a back four following the change, with Perisic operating as a left-back rather than his usual wing-back berth, Stellini could elect to stick with that formation if he wanted to at St James' Park.
However, the fact is on Saturday they were chasing the game against Bournemouth and going with the attack-minded Perisic at left-back from the off perhaps wouldn't be the wisest of options against Newcastle in such an important match in the top-four race.
For that reason, Stellini will more than likely go with the usual three-man defence. All at Tottenham will be hoping for some positive news on the injury front over the coming days as Ben Davies is one of a number of players in the treatment room, with Lenglet now potentially joining him in there if he requires time on the sidelines.
Stellini was quizzed about Davies and Ryan Sessegnon in his pre-match press conference on Friday afternoon and indicated that they are still working alone as they bid to return to fitness.
He said: "Is a question for the doctor. They are not working with us. They are working alone. We are pushing and the doctor are trying to do their best to have them without risk as soon as possible, but it’s not a question for me, I don’t have a perfect answer."
If Tottenham are to be without Davies and Lenglet on Tyneside, Japhet Tanganga could potentially be the player to profit if Stellini believes it is best to leave Sanchez out of the starting XI. The former England Under-21 has only featured in six games for Tottenham this campaign, with two of those coming from the start in the Premier League.
In the same boat as Sanchez with match rhythm not there due to only receiving minutes here and there every so often, Stellini may have no choice but to go with Tanganga in his back three. Although the academy graduate has mainly operated on the right of the three when he has played, he has played on the left side in the past and that would stop the acting head coach moving Cristian Romero over to the opposite side, as was the case against Bournemouth.
Now with a week to prepare for Newcastle on the training ground, Stellini has to get a plan in place as they look to keep their top-four ambitions alive. Whoever he selects in his starting XI, the boss needs a response from his team as they look to put their Bournemouth nightmare behind them in such a pivotal week for the club.
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