Tottenham Hotspur have been warned that Leeds United will cause their defence problems on Saturday in north London.
This has been suggested by the former footballer and Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson who has been previewing this weekend’s games in his weekly Sportskeeda column.
Spurs go into Saturday’s game having been dumped out of the Carabao Cup by Premier League strugglers Nottingham Forest and on the back of a defeat at home last weekend at the hands of Liverpool.
In comparison, Jesse Marsch’s Whites enter the game after back-to-back Premier League victories with respectable wins against Liverpool and Bournemouth.
And with the Lilywhites finding themselves in a run of turbulent form, Merson has aired his worries about the Spurs backline with Leeds scoring six in their last two league games:
“Leeds play with a lot of energy, and fair play to them – they stick to their guns. They play exactly the same way whether they’re winning or losing, and that seems to be their Achilles heel,” wrote Merson.
“They always play gung-ho football, and they’ll cause Tottenham a few problems because of their energy.”
TIF Thoughts on Merson’s comments…
Unfortunately for Spurs, this is probably going to be the case purely on the basis of how their backline has faired over recent weeks.
Is Spurs' defence their biggest weakness?
Yes
No
In their last seven games across all competitions, Spurs have not kept a single clean sheet and in those games have conceded 12 goals.
And as Leeds come into the game on the back of two confidence-boosting victories where they scored six times, you do have to agree with Merson in the notion this Leeds attack could cause some serious problems on Saturday.
But it is now time for Antonio Conte’s men to stand up and put on a performance for their fans as they play their final game before the World Cup break.