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Tottenham team news vs Chelsea: Predicted line-up - Kane starts, Poch makes three changes
TOTTENHAM team news vs Chelsea: Spurs travel to Stamford Bridge tonight looking to keep alive their faint hopes of winning the Premier League.
Chelsea v Tottenham: Premier League match preview
Tottenham are six points off top-of-table Liverpool but look in good shape to qualify for next season’s Champions League.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side were dealt a huge blow in their title pursuit last Saturday at the hands of relegation-threatened Burnley, who pulled off a shock 2-1 victory.
One positive from the defeat at Turf Moor for Spurs was the return of their talismanic striker Harry Kane, who had been sat on the sidelines with an ankle injury.
Kane is expected to lead the line at Stamford Bridge, with Son Heung-Min flanking him on the wing.
Tottenham will, however, still be without the services of Kane’s England team-mate Dele Alli.
A hamstring injury has kept the former MK Dons man on the sidelines since Tottenham’s last-gasp victory over Fulham last month. It’s currently unknown when the 22-year-old will be back in action.
"Stil,l I don’t know, we don’t know,” Pochettino said in his pre-match press conference when asked to provide an update on Alli. “We need to assess day by day.
“He’s doing well but we cannot say if he’s going to be available for the weekend or for the next week or the games against Borussia Dortmund or Southampton. It’s sure for tomorrow it’s impossible and then we’ll see.”
He’s doing well but we cannot say if he’s going to be available for the weekend or for the next week or the games against Borussia Dortmund or Southampton
Eric Dier is also expected to miss tonight’s match in west London, which many believe is a must-win for under-pressure Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri.
The former Sporting Lisbon man missed a slew of games in January due to the removal of his appendix and will miss the trip to Stamford Bridge with a bout of tonsillitis.
Ben Davies, Davinson Sanchez and Kieran Trippier will likely be restored to the starting XI tonight, coming in for Serge Aurier, Danny Rose and Juan Foyth.
Pochettino is hoping his troops respond to their latest setback with an impressive win over their London rivals, who are in the midst of a three-way battle for the final Champions League spot.
“To be positive I need to see the reaction of my players tomorrow,” Pochettino said. “Only I am capable of being happy if we beat Chelsea tomorrow because I still feel pain from the defeat against Burnley, it's impossible to put out that feeling.
“Only you can change the emotion and feeling if you are capable tomorrow of showing everyone that it was an accident and we are capable of being Chelsea. It's going to be tough of course.
“It's going to be difficult because Chelsea are a great team with great players.
"Of course, it's always tough to play at Stamford Bridge but we need to try in a different way to how we tried at Burnley.
“I think what disappointed the most is that it was so easy for Burnley to beat us. That is painful because we knew it would be a difficult game.
“I not only told you but everyone that I was worried about translating to the players that it was going to be a game that you need to match the aggression and the way that they fight, but we didn't match them in this aspect and that is why we lost the game and that is painful.”
Tottenham team news vs Chelsea - Predicted line-up - Premier League
Lloris; Alderweireld, Sanchez, Vertonghen; Trippier, Sissoko, Winks, Davies; Eriksen; Kane, Son