Yves Bissouma could start ahead of Rodrigo Bentancur in Tottenham’s midfield against Crystal Palace
Tottenham Hotspur have made it three wins in a row in the Europa League as they edged past Dutch side AZ Alkmaar 1-0 in North London on Thursday.
Spurs managed to get over the line at home thanks to Richarlison’s second-half penalty, which was won by Lucas Bergvall. Ange Postecoglou had made nine changes to the team in midweek from Spurs’ 4-1 win over London rivals West Ham United last weekend.
One of the players who started against AZ Alkmaar was Rodrigo Bentancur. The Uruguay international started as the deepest in a midfield three alongside James Maddison and Lucas Bergvall.
He enjoyed a strong outing, dictating play and creating a base for Maddison and Bergvall to thrive. Rodrigo Bentancur completed 90 minutes of action, helping Spurs beat AZ Alkmaar and continue their winning start to the Europa League campaign.
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John Wenham—the owner of the famous Spurs podcast Lilywhite Rose—thinks Ange Postecoglou will start Yves Bissouma ahead of Bentancur against Crystal Palace in the Premier League on the weekend.
“I expect Bissouma to start at Selhurst Park,” John Wenham exclusively said to Tottenham News.
“He started against West Ham last time out in the Premier League but didn’t start against AZ Alkmaar. He has scored a couple of goals recently, including against the Hammers.
“I’ve always preferred Bentancur to Bissouma if I’m being honest. However, it seems as though the pecking order is Bissouma ahead of Bentancur right now.”
While Bentancur played the whole game in midweek, Yves Bissouma was an unused substitute. Bentancur had started the league games against Manchester United and Brighton and Hove Albion but was dropped in favour of Bissouma in Spurs’ 4-1 win over West Ham. He entered the fray as a substitute and managed only nine minutes.
Bissouma, meanwhile, has bulldozed his way into Big Ange’s starting XI after a tough start to the season owing to an off-field issue. The Malian is ahead of Bentancur in the midfield pecking order as it should be due to his fine form of late. He was terrific against West Ham, scoring a fantastic goal from outside the box.
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Having not clocked a single minute in the Europa League game against AZ Alkmaar only increases Bissouma’s chances of starting as a defensive midfielder ahead of Bentancur in the upcoming league. Or else in a tricky away fixture at Selhurst Park, Big Ange could opt to start both along with Dejan Kulusevski in the Spurs engine room.
