TalkSPORT’s Adrian Clarke believes that both Richarlison and Dejan Kulusevski will be back to start for Tottenham Hotspur tomorrow afternoon.
Spurs will be looking to head into the winter World Cup break on the back of a victory against Leeds United, especially after losing at home in their last league outing, and some injury boosts could increase their chances.
Richarlison and Kulusevski featured midweek in the club’s Carabao Cup defeat against Nottingham Forest and Clarke now believes that Antonio Conte will look to thrust them into the starting lineup in the Premier League.
Clarke has claimed on the MatchBook Betting YouTube channel that the Spurs duo could indeed be in line for rare starts.
(5:40) “Pretty average teams are carving Leeds open and Kulusevski’s probably back, Richarlison’s probably back so they should be a better proposition Spurs in the final third.”
Will Spurs beat Leeds?
Yes!
No!
TIF Thoughts on the return of Richarlison and Kulusevski…
In normal circumstances, Conte may well have looked to integrate the pair from the bench for a few games before then handing them starts, however, given Spurs could lose their grip on the top four this weekend and the injury to Son Heung-min means he may well have no other choice.
If Richarlison and Kulusevski are to start vs Leeds it would certainly take a lot of pressure off Harry Kane, who’s netted 11 goals in 14 league appearances this season, which could be crucial as he’s reportedly very tired at the moment, according to Conte.
While the return of the Spurs duo would appear huge on paper, the facts are that neither of them have been prolific in the Premier League this season managing to score once between them in 17 appearances, so they may not be able to hit the ground running as some may be expecting.