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Alasdair Gold & Rob Guest

Richarlison returns as big switch mulled: The Tottenham team Ryan Mason should select vs Palace

Ryan Mason will want to win Tottenham's final four matches of the season starting with a London derby against Crystal Palace.

The 31-year-old acting Spurs head coach has got his team scoring goals with five in his two matches in charge, but the team has also conceded six at the other end and he will need to plug that gap if he is to match his record from two years ago when he took caretaker charge as a 29-year-old and won four of his six Premier League games.

Mason will also want to press his own claims to be considered for the full-time job as chairman Daniel Levy looks for the next Tottenham manager.

READ MORE: Daniel Levy begins next Tottenham manager talks as Spurs hit reset button with drastic overhaul

We asked our Tottenham correspondents Alasdair Gold and Rob Guest what team they reckon the young coach will select for his third game in charge after the draw against Manchester United and dramatic defeat at Liverpool.

Alasdair Gold - Tottenham Hotspur correspondent

Mason needs to keep the attacking creativity going but at the same time fix the leaky defence that seems to take an age to get settled in games.

Eric Dier had another day to forget in the backline but it will be a big test for the young coach to drop one of his more experienced players, despite Clement Lenglet ready in the wings and waiting to come in. The temptation for Mason to switch to his favoured back four will also be there, particularly with Ben Davies back and fully fit, but it might be better for the acting boss to stick with what the players know for now and Pedro Porro has not looked suited to the formation yet.

Oliver Skipp played well in midfield at Liverpool before that nasty cut to his head after Diogo Jota's high challenge and if he is able to play then he will likely continue in his role at the expense of Pape Matar Sarr.

However, up front Richarlison could well come in following his first Premier League goal of the season and another disappointing display from Dejan Kulusevski.

Gold's team: Forster; Romero, Dier, Davies; Porro, Hojbjerg, Skipp, Perisic; Richarlison, Kane, Son.

Rob Guest - Tottenham Hotspur reporter

Mason has the opportunity to tweak his Tottenham XI for this weekend’s Premier League clash against Crystal Palace. Having picked up one point from a possible six in the last two games, Tottenham need to beat the Eagles as they chase a European spot for next season.

One change that could well happen is Richarlison coming into the XI after his goal against Liverpool last weekend. Perhaps unlucky to miss out on the team at Anfield after a decent showing against Manchester United, the Brazilian may well take the place of Dejan Kulusevski in attack.

Tottenham certainly need to take a look at their backline after shipping three goals in 15 minutes on Merseyside. Bringing Clement Lenglet into the team in place of Eric Dier makes sense, although it remains to be seen if Mason will actually make that change as he may opt to keep faith in the England man again.

Guest’s team: Forster; Romero, Dier, Davies; Porro, Hojbjerg, Skipp, Perisic; Son, Kane, Richarlison.

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