90min

The Tottenham Lineup That Should Start Against Southampton

By Mitch Wilks

Spurs face Southampton in search for their first league win of the season this weekend
Spurs face Southampton in search for their first league win of the season this weekend / Nikolay Doychinov/Getty Images
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Hold your horses, Spurs fans.

It's all very exciting thinking about two rather big, Real Madrid-looking elephants in the room, but they aren't quite available yet and there's still a Premier League game to play without them this weekend.

Tottenham bounced back from a disappointing opening day defeat to Everton last weekend by scraping past Lokomotiv Plovdiv in the midweek. 'Bounced back' meaning 'very narrowly edged past an unknown side who were down to nine men'.

Still, it's hard not to be excited as a Spurs fan with what's going on around the club currently, no matter how hard Jose Mourinho might be trying to change that. A trip to Southampton at the weekend for the Lilywhites needs to result in three points.

Spurs fans - get the hair gel out and whack it in for your best 2012 Gareth Bale quiff tribute, sit back and relax. Here's the team that should start at St Mary's on Sunday afternoon.

1. Goalkeeper and Defenders

Ben Davies must prove his worth to keep Sergio Reguilion out of the team
Ben Davies must prove his worth to keep Sergio Reguilion out of the team / Marc Atkins/Getty Images

Hugo Lloris (GK) - The skipper is a safe pair of hands and an experienced member of the side. His abilities and wisdom will be vital in correcting the errors of last weekend.

Matt Doherty (RB) - Doherty brings a new air of dynamism to Spurs' back line, allowing them to create problems from deep and overload teams more efficiently. He's much more likely to feature than Serge Aurier.

Davinson Sanchez (CB) - Another season older, another wiser. Sanchez is one of Tottenham's most assured defensive options at this point and will be needed in this one.

Eric Dier (CB) - Dier was poor against Everton, but has generally been much more impressive playing as a centre back. He needs confidence and regular minutes.

Ben Davies (LB) - Davies gets the nod once more, merely because Sergio Reguilon isn't quite over the line in time.

2. Midfielders

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Giovani Lo Celso (CM) - Lo Celso returned from injury in Spurs' nervy win over Plovdiv in midweek. With the first game back out of the way, he has to start against Southampton.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (CM) - Hojbjerg is in line to start against his former employers, where he spent four years before moving to north London this summer.

Tanguy Ndombele (CM) - Tottenham's club-record signing finally proved his worth when given the chance in that cagey Europa League affair. Ndombele bagged the winner and deserves the chance to find some regular form.

3. Forwards

Kane scored an important penalty against Plovdiv to get Spurs level
Kane scored an important penalty against Plovdiv to get Spurs level / Nikolay Doychinov/Getty Images

Steven Bergwijn (RW) - Bergwijn must continue in the side after a disappointing opening day for Lucas Moura. The two of them have it all to prove with Gareth Bale set to return imminently.

Harry Kane (ST) - Bale could perhaps play up front if need be, but Tottenham aren't paying those wage fees for him to be an understudy striker. They could still do with a forward to alleviate the burden on Kane, who will only really miss a game if injuries force him out of action.

Son Heung-min (LW) - The superstar South Korean is arguably Spurs' best player, but even he could be at risk of losing his place in the XI following Bale's impending return. A good performance against Southampton will reassure anyone naïve enough to doubt Son.