Will Lankshear will be hoping to play for Tottenham Hotspur against Galatasaray in the Europa League on Thursday evening

Will Lankshear and 5 Tottenham players with a chance to impress Ange Postecoglou at Galatasaray

06 Nov 2024, 07:00 by Alasdair Gold · football.london

Ange Postecoglou is going to have to rotate his starting XI for Tottenham Hotspur's Europa League tie at Galatasaray on Thursday evening.

Spurs came through a gruelling week with three games in seven days with a narrow defeat at Crystal Palace and then impressive wins at home against Manchester City and Aston Villa. Now they make their way to Turkey and Istanbul in order to continue their Europa League campaign.

When they land back in the UK after the game they will have just two-and-a-half days until they welcome Ipswich Town on Sunday afternoon in the Premier League.

Tottenham have won their opening three Europa League matches so are in a strong position in second place in the overall group. That should allow Postecoglou more breathing room to rotate his squad to ensure he does not burn out his key players.

That's not to say Spurs will underestimate their hosts, who have started their own Europa League campaign well and sit in fifth. They have not lost a single game this season in the Turkish flight, which they sit on top of.

With all of that in mind, here are five players who will be hoping to get the chance to impress Postecoglou on Thursday night.

Will Lankshear

The sight of Richarlison immediately clutching his hamstring after setting up Dominic Solanke to score on Sunday brought more frustration for the unfortunate attacker, Postecoglou and the Tottenham supporters.

However, it does open the door for 19-year-old Will Lankshear to get more first team experience under his belt. The teenage striker started Spurs' first Europa League game at Ferencvaros and was unfortunate not to score a couple of goals in a busy display that night in Budapest.

Solanke has given everything to the Tottenham cause with his work ethic and in the past three games has run himself into the ground for the team.

Richarlison would likely have started this match in Istanbul and Postecoglou could decide to hand Lankshear the chance to experience what will be a hostile environment in Turkey as part of his development after impressing the coaching staff in pre-season, while giving Solanke a well-earned rest.

Mikey Moore

For a 17-year-old, Mikey Moore has been handed plenty of game time already this season as Postecoglou looks to give the exciting winger a pathway to develop his talents.

Moore has already made a string of starts for Spurs this season, with the Europa League bringing the bulk of them.

Whether both academy team-mates Moore and Lankshear start will likely be decided by what happens with Tottenham captain Son Heung-min.

The South Korean star came off the pitch after 55 minutes on Sunday, much to his obvious disappointment, and Postecoglou could decide to give the skipper another 45 minutes to an hour to provide an experienced head within the team.

If Moore plays then it's another chance to develop and throw his hat into the ring for further Premier League starts despite his tender years.

Lucas Bergvall

It was always expected that Lucas Bergvall would take a little longer than his fellow 18-year-old summer arrival Archie Gray to acclimatise to life at Tottenham as well as the rough and tumble of the English game.

That's not to say Bergvall has struggled but Gray played a full 50-game season in the Championship before arriving at Spurs so was physically ready for the challenge ahead. For Bergvall, the step up from Swedish football requires more fitness work to handle the speed of the game and that is something Postecoglou and the coaching staff have been working on with him.

The young Swede was unfortunate to come off after just seven minutes against Qarabag following Radu Draguin's dismissal, leaving the teenager without another game in his legs.

Bergvall has accordingly tired as matches have worn on when he's started and he needs further exposure to games like this, especially with what is likely to be a fast and frenetic encounter at times in front of the noisy RAMS Park crowd.

Bergvall has talent aplenty as a potential Tottenham playmaker and he will be desperate to show Postecoglou that he is ready for more game time in the Premier League with a big performance in Istanbul.

He is also developing a friendship with Mikey Moore, which could see the two talented youngsters linking up on the pitch for years to come.

Alfie Dorrington

Much depends on the status of Cristian Romero's foot after the Argentine had to come off in the second half against Villa after hurting it following a late challenge.

Reports from Argentina suggest it was a minor toe ligament injury rather than a break and the centre-back will be out for up to 10 days, which would put him out of the next two matches.

Should the World Cup winner be left at home as the team flies out to Turkey, then Alfie Dorrington could be called up from the U21s with Micky van de Ven out with his hamstring strain. Dorrington was not involved on Tuesday night as the U21s lost to Swindon in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy.

Radu Dragusin and Ben Davies will likely start in the centre of defence on Thursday and Gray will be next in line, despite his lack of experience in the centre-back role.

However, there's an opportunity for Dorrington to get a spot on the bench and potentially make his debut at some point depending on how the game plays out.

The 19-year-old has been working his way back to fitness and sharpness in recent months following his return from a hamstring operation and he will be hoping to get the chance to catch Postecoglou's eye at times this season before Luka Vuskovic arrives next summer.

Yves Bissouma

Away from the teenagers and we're putting Yves Bissouma into this list for a different reason.

The Mali international is in a running battle at the moment with Rodrigo to start as the number six in Postecoglou's team for each game. Both players are getting plenty of minutes as the Spurs boss alternates between them but both would probably prefer to be the Premier League starting midfielder.

Bissouma has so far started only four of the 10 Premier League matches this season for Tottenham, albeit doing so in two of the previous three.

With Bentancur starting on Sunday against Villa and being replaced by Bissouma after 55 minutes, either could get the nod in Istanbul. If it's Bissouma then he will want to make a case to get more game time in the Premier League with a big display.

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