Man City, Tottenham in battle royale, line-ups revealed

The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will host a critical kicker on Sunday afternoon, as the champions Manchester City head to Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League.

Man City will be looking to defend the title that they reclaimed last term, while Spurs will be aiming to push closer to the top four in 2021-22, having finished a disappointing seventh in the top flight last season.

Now under the management of Nuno Espirito Santo, it will be fascinating to see what Tottenham achieve this season, and as expected, talk of Harry Kane has dominated the build up to this contest; the England captain trained alongside his teammates on Friday, but Nuno has refused to reveal whether the striker will play against the side that are desperate to sign him in the current market.

READ ALSO: UCL Final: Chelsea, Man City possible line-ups at Portugal

Spurs have managed to boost their squad this summer with the arrivals of Bryan Gil, Pierluigi Gollini and Cristian Romero, but it would be a monumental blow to the North London club if they were to lose Kane, who is thought to be valued by Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy in excess of £160m.

Whether or not Kane plays this weekend, Tottenham have bigger fish to fry, with the team desperate to make a positive start to the season. Last term, the club claimed seventh, but they were only five points off the top four, and Nuno will certainly be looking to move closer to the Champions League spots this season.

Pep Guardiola’s side certainly had their problems during the 2020-21 campaign, but a record of 27 wins, five draws and six defeats from 38 matches saw them collect 86 points, which left them 12 points clear of second-place Manchester United, showing the gap that potential challengers need to make up this term.

READ ALSO: Finally, why Harry Kane boycotted Tottenham’s training revealed

Man City have broken the British transfer record this summer to sign Jack Grealish, while they are still said to be actively pursuing Kane, despite Guardiola refusing to discuss the England captain when questioned on the situation during Friday’s pre-match press conference.

The Citizens will believe that a positive result on Sunday would set them up nicely for back-to-back home matches against Norwich City and Arsenal to end the month, and it is vital that the likes of Man United, Liverpool and Chelsea manage to cling onto the champions in the early months of the season.

New signing Romero is also a doubt due to an injury that he picked up at the Copa America, meaning that Davinson Sanchez could feature alongside Eric Dier in the middle of the defence.

Tanguy Ndombele is not expected to make the squad, but Japhet Tanganga should start at right-back despite being forced off against Arsenal last time out.

Lucas Moura, Dele Alli and Steven Bergwijn could ultimately operate as the three behind Son, with Giovani Lo Celso joining Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the middle of the park.

As for Man City, Phil Foden remains on the sidelines due to a foot injury, while Kevin De Bruyne will not be involved, as the Belgium international is still not training fully with the club.

Raheem Sterling, John Stones, Kyle Walker and Ederson are already following international commitments, though, and it would not be a surprise to see at least three of those starts against Tottenham.

Grealish is in line to make his Premier League debut for the Citizens, while Ferran Torres and Riyad Mahrez are also expected to feature in the final third of the field, with Gabriel Jesus an option off the bench.

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:

Lloris; Tanganga; Sanchez, Dier, Reguilon; Lo Celso, Hojbjerg; Lucas, Dele, Bergwijn; Son

Manchester City possible starting lineup:

Ederson; Walker, Stones, Dias, Cancelo; Gundogan, Rodri, Fernandinho; Mahrez, Torres, Grealish