Spurs: Ange must release his “scary” gem ahead of “him”
Tottenham Hotspur can maintain their unbeaten start to the new Premier League season with a win against newly-promoted strugglers Sheffield United this afternoon. Prior to the international break, the Lilywhites had won three consecutive league matches.
Ange Postecoglou has been named the Premier League’s Manager of the Month for the month of August. The 58-year-old’s excellent start in charge of Tottenham Hotspur was exemplified by a 5-2 road victory over Burnley in their most recent match.
Summer signing James Maddison, who has two goals and two assists in just four league appearances this season, followed his manager in being named the league’s Player of the Month, with the 26-year-old seemingly set to start against the Blades once more.
What is the latest Tottenham vs. Sheffield United team news?
Both Heung-min Son and Cristian Romero are expected to be fit to play later today, despite suffering injury concerns while on international duty over the past week or so. This will provide Postecoglou and his teammates with a significant sense of relief.
"The City Ground ROARS like it hasn't ROARED in years!!" 🔊#NFFC's Brennan Johnson gives his side the lead against the run of play! ⚽💥 pic.twitter.com/jXTWl74FCQ
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) May 17, 2022
Giovani Lo Celso, a 27-year-old dynamo for the Lilywhites, is still recovering from a muscle injury, and Rodrigo Bentancur, a long-term absentee, is still in the process of returning to fitness.
With the majority of the squad “fit, healthy, and available,” per Postecoglou, Brennan Johnson, who joined on the transfer deadline but did not play in the recent victory at Turf Moor, should be in line for his debut.
Will Brennan Johnson feature against Sheffield United?
Although, as the adage goes, no game in the Premier League is ever easy, it could be a good time to introduce the 22-year-old against a team that has earned just one point so far this season, with that coming against a fellow relegation-threatened team, Everton, in their most recent match.
As previously lauded by journalist Josh Bunting, the Nottingham native is a player who “causes so many problems with his pace and vision,” with the Bramall Lane club evidently aware of that fact as Spurs’ new man has scored two goals in just five career meetings with today’s opponents.
Fresh off a 2022/23 campaign in which he scored eight goals in his first Premier League season, it is hoped that it will not be too long before Johnson is flourishing in Lilywhite, helping to bolster an attacking unit that suffered a setback last month with the loss of talisman Harry Kane.
While recent hat-trick sensation Son is likely to retain his position in the middle, flanked by Manor Solomon – who registered two assists against the Clarets – on the left, the £47.5m acquisition may find a permanent home on the right wing.
Dejan Kulusevski has started every league game so far this season on the left wing and scored against Bournemouth in August.
However, the jury is still out on whether the Swede is ideally suited to Postecoglou’s demands, as 90min reported in the summer that the ex-Celtic manager was not overly impressed by the wing wizard.
According to the Premier League Panel, playing on the right simply “doesn’t maximise Kulusevski’s ball-striking, large space ball-carrying, ability to turn with pressure on his back, and weighting of [through] balls,” which is why a midfield position could be a better fit.
Regarding Johnson, the 6’1″ superstar – whose potential has been described as “quite scary” by international teammate Aaron Ramsey – will undoubtedly be eager to hit the ground running in his new surroundings, and there may be no better time for Postecoglou to begin the bedding-in process than today.
Spurs: Ange must release his “scary” gem ahead of “him”