Tottenham predicted XI vs Sheffield Utd as £42m star suffers injury scare and trio miss out

Tottenham will be hoping to extend their unbeaten start to the new Premier League campaign when they host struggling Sheffield United on Saturday afternoon. Ange Postecoglou have taken 10 points from their opening four top flight fixtures this term, and are currently second in the table, just two points adrift of leaders Manchester City.

For their part, the Blades have have managed just the one singular draw since their promotion from the Championship, but that result did come in their last outing, against Everton, and were it not for the last gasp heroics of England number one Jordan Pickford, they may have earned all three points at Bramall Lane.

Since then, both clubs have faced nervous waits, with a number of their best players heading out on international duty over the past fortnight - but what impact, if any, will the recent break have had on how Spurs line up against their visitors this weekend? Check out our predicted XI below...

Tottenham team news

The international break was a tense time for Tottenham, with a couple of key talents subjected to notable injury scares. Club captain Son Heung-min was pictured wearing heavy strapping and an ice pack on his knee while away with South Korea, and it is understood that the knock was sustained during a training camp in Newcastle ahead of a friendly with Saudi Arabia at St. James’ Park. All concerns were dispelled, however, when the 31-year-old was named in the starting XI for that match, which the Taegeuk Warriors won 1-0.

Similarly, in-form defender Cristian Romero was at the centre of widespread alarm when reports in South America suggested that he had picked up a complaint during Argentina’s 1-0 win over Ecuador. As with Son, however, the £42 million would go on to feature in his side’s second fixture of the break, completing a full 90 minutes in a 3-0 victory of Bolivia on Tuesday night.

Those issues aside, Spurs otherwise boast a relatively clean bill of health, but are set to be without the trio of Rodrigo Bentancur, Ryan Sessegnon, and Bryan Gil. All three are long-term absentees who are yet to feature under Postecoglou, and no date has been set for their expected return at this stage. A decision is expected to be made on Giovani Lo Celso, who missed Argentina’s international double header with a thigh problem.

Predicted Tottenham starting XI

Guglielmo Vicario; Pedro Porro, Cristian Romero, Micky Van de Ven, Destiny Udogie; Pape Matar Sarr, Yves Bissouma; Dejan Kulusevski, James Maddison, Manor Solomon; Son Heung-min.

Sheffield United team news

Sheffield United face a number of potential injury concerns heading into Saturday’s visit to north London. Summer signing Yasser Larouci sustained a back injury prior to the international break that is likely to require some assessment, while Rhian Brewster and Anel Ahmedhodzic are also set to face late fitness tests ahead of the weekend.

In more promising news for Paul Heckingbottom’s side, John Egan has returned from a knee injury, and should start having featured for his native Republic of Ireland last weekend.

Predicted Sheffield United starting XI

Wes Foderingham; Chris Basham, John Egan, Jack Robinson; George Baldock, Gustavo Hamer, Vinicius Souza, Oliver Norwood, Luke Thomas; Cameron Archer, Oli McBurnie.