OPINION
Danny Rose has been ruled out from returning to the Tottenham side to face Newcastle on Sunday afternoon and Ben Davies must take his chance to nail down a first-team slot.
Tottenham confirmed on their official Twitter account that Rose would join Georges N’Koudou and Erik Lamela from missing the trip to Tyneside due to a knee problem.
TEAM NEWS: @gknkoudou (foot), @ErikLamela (hip) and Danny Rose (knee) will miss out. All other players are available for selection. pic.twitter.com/S2qO7tNYey
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) August 11, 2017
The Sun claim Tottenham’s London rivals Chelsea want to sign the former Leeds left-back for £40million this summer, with Rose’s future at Spurs in doubt after his controversial comments about his side earlier this week.
In a different report, the Sun claimed Rose had been fined two weeks’ wages after urging the club to buy two or three new players and stating that he would be open to offers to leave the north London outfit.
But with the England international sidelined, 24-year-old Davies is expected to step in on the left side of defence against Rafa Benitez’s Toon as Mauricio Pochettino looks to get his side off to a winning start at St. James’ Park.
In what is a huge weekend for Wales international Davies, Pochettino is likely to be keeping a close eye on his performance with Rose potentially set to join Kyle Walker in leaving the club this summer.
Spurs are yet to buy a replacement for Walker with Kieran Trippier set to replace the Manchester City defender when he returns from an ankle problem, and Davies will be hoping the same scenario will occur if Rose leaves.
But for that to happen, Davies must shine on the left flank against Newcastle in order to prove to Pochettino that he has what it takes to become Spurs’ first-choice left-back.
Last season, Davies impressed but was still second choice as Rose struggled with multiple injuries on the sidelines. Making 34 appearances, Davies scored twice and laid on three assists as well as helping Spurs keep 16 clean sheets.
Davies proved last season that he is capable of being one of the best full-backs in the division, but was unable to consistently show that throughout all of his first-team opportunities.
The former Swansea ace needs to reignite that form and be one of Spurs’ best performers on Sunday in order to convince fans and Pochettino alike that he is the man to replace Rose, rather than the Argentinian boss having to scour the transfer market for a replacement.