Tottenham Hotspur are hoping for some form of James Maddison to return tonight when they take on Manchester City in the fourth round of the FA Cup.
Maddison has been injured since a 4-1 Premier League defeat to Chelsea earlier this season, but has come close to a return to action this month. Spurs’ injury problems have cleared up in recent weeks, so the return of the summer signing will be a major boost.
“Madders trained with us, he had a full week of training,” Postecoglou confirmed at a press conference on Thursday. The Spurs boss also confirmed that Dejan Kuleshevski has recovered from his illness.
This news will be music to the ears of Tottenham fans as tonight’s cup clash against City is the most important game of the season for them. Spurs have been waiting for a domestic trophy for 16 years, and winning the FA Cup is the last chance to do so this campaign.
Maddison and Kulushevski are back, meaning Tottenham are almost at full strength, with Giovani Lo Celso, Manor Solomon and Alejo Veliz the only first-time absentees. Apart from two new reinforcements, Tim Werner and Radu Dragusin, Postecoglou has more than enough to eliminate Pep Guardiola’s team.
Spurs have not played since 14 January, when they drew 2-2 with Manchester United, which means they have had almost two weeks to recharge their batteries and prepare for tonight’s clash.
Below, we take a look at what the squad could look like for tonight’s FA Cup clash.
Goalkeepers: Guglielmo Vicario, Fraser Forster
Defenders: Pedro Porro, Radu Dragusin, Emerson Royal, Destiny Udogie, Micky van de Ven, Cristian Romero, Alfie Dorrington, Ryan Sessegnon
Midfielders: Oliver Skipp, James Maddison, Rodrigo Bentancur, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Brooklyn Lyons-Foster
Attackers: Richarlison, Timo Werner, Bryan Gil, Dejan Kulusevski, Brennan Johnson, Jamie Donley