There are huge stakes on the line for Tottenham Hotspur in the following week, where the North Londoners fate for the season could be hanging by a thread as they visit Germany for the highly awaited second leg of the Europa League quarter-final tie against Eintracht Frankfurt, with the 1-1 draw at N17 turning the return leg into one of those games that will test Ange Postecoglou’s leadership and tactical abilities. The Australian’s head coach’s future with the Lilywhites could also perhaps be resting on the outcome of the game. But before turning the heads towards UEL, Spurs will be heading to Wolverhampton Wanderers’ home, Molineux Stadium.

At this point, for Tottenham faithful, a Premier League game is anything but a routine for the 2024/25 season, and the supporters would not mind seeing a second-string side tomorrow, with many hoping that Ange would be looking to save energy and avoid injury hazards in the squad ahead of the all-important European second-tier game, but will the former Celtic manager think on these lines? Given that Ange wouldn’t want to take up a loss and add to that psychological pressure before going into the second leg.

We look at some key battles that could decide the outcome of Wolves vs Tottenham.

Cristian Romero vs Jorgen Strand Larsen

We do know Cristian Romero for his quite aggressive nature going into duels, and it will end up being important this weekend, given he will be up against Jorgen Strand Larsen.

The Argentine centre-back is known to step out to disrupt passing lanes, and while this has been a liability for Tottenham of late given how some quick forwards have used the space he leaves behind to exploit attacking sequences, the Halden-born forward cannot be given the time on the ball to stretch the plays for Wolves, who do like to use their wingers in certain zones.

While talking about Larsen per se, he does possess attributes that can end up troubling Romero. He has that ability to hold up the ball and bring others into play, which (as earlier mentioned) can be used against Romero’s aggressive tendencies. If Wolves end up playing Cunha alongside Larsen, the latter’s movement off the ball could drag Romero out of position, creating opportunities for the Brazilian.

In the end, this will go down to whether Romero can dominate the physical space while understanding his strategic movements off the ball to limit space and, in turn, measures behind.

Mathys Tel vs Nelson Semedo

With Son expected to be rested for the mid-week’s game, Tel could get a nod on the left flank and he would be up against veteran campaigner Nelson Semedo. We do know Tel for his pace, dribbling ability, and directness, and we have seen glimpses of it at N17 since he moved on deadline day, but it will be tricky to deploy those against the Portuguese right-back given his pace and recovery abilities that have troubled many wingers this season. A lot about this battle will be down to how Semedo approaches the game – does he adopt a more conservative approach, or will he operate higher on the pitch, leaving space behind for Tel?

While for Tel, he will have to showcase his ability to time his runs and bring his dribbling skills into play to get the better of Semedo, who does have a habit of joining Wolves attack in transition situations, so it will be an interesting test of his mettle.

Brennan Johnson vs Rayan Ait Nouri

There will be another interesting battle of mettle taking place on the opposite flank as winger Brennan Johnson will rub shoulders with Wolves’ attacking left-back Rayan Ait Nouri. We have seen the former Nottingham Forest wide forward use his blistering pace to stretch defences while being highly direct when he is on the ball, but this makes life difficult for French-born Algerian international who has tendencies to contribute to Wolves’ attacking play with his dribbling, crossing, and ability to arrive in the box.

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It should be a fascinating watch for all the football tacticians who will want to study the risks that Ait Nouri takes and the spaces he occupies OOP and on the ball. If Nouri pushes up, as he often does, he leaves space behind that Johnson can use on the counterattack. So Vitor Pereira might have to use one of his midfielders to drop down in defensive half spaces to mitigate this risk.