Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham Hotspur will be looking to bounce back from their FA Cup defeat to Manchester City by trying to beat Ivan Toney-inspired Brentford on Wednesday.
With Son Heung-min still away on international duty at the Asian Cup, you would imagine that the likes of Timo Werner and Brennan Johnson will start.
When the South Korean star returns, Paul Merson says Brennan Johnson will be dropped from the XI because ‘there has been a lot of talk about Tottenham’s frontline in the absence of Son Heung-min’, as he told Sportskeeda.
During Spurs’ 2-2 draw at Old Trafford, despite dominating large parts of the match, they missed a number of guilt-edge opportunities.
Brennan Johnson came under fire once again, just like the £48 million signing did in the FA Cup, with this free-flowing and all-action Ange Postecoglou team failing to register an effort on goal in the first half.
Given what Spurs have been producing going forward this season, that was unthinkable and unexpected, even if it was against the Treble winners.
That’s why Paul Merson is expecting Brennan Johnson to be booted out of XI, sooner rather than later, but he is still backing the team to secure a 3-1 win over Brentford on Wednesday.
Brennan Johnson’s form
“There’s been a lot of talk about Spurs’ frontline in the absence of Son Heung-min,” said Merson.
“But between Timo Werner and Brennan Johnson, I think the latter is more likely to lose his place when the South Korean returns from the Asian Cup. Werner has had some hard games since he joined the club earlier this month, so we have to wait to judge him.
“When everyone’s fit, I think their front line would be Dejan Kulusevski and Son, with Maddison playing behind them.”
Tottenham can move into fourth
On Tuesday, Aston Villa lost their long unbeaten record at home after they were beaten by a rejuvenated Newcastle United.
That now means that a win, by a two-goal margin, for Spurs against Brentford will put the London club into fourth spot.
With the likes of Micky van de Ven and James Maddison back in action, it will feel like perfect timing and provide the team with even more of a boost.
But, whatever happens, this is Spurs’ chance to take control of fourth spot and make sure Champions League football returns next season.
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