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After having made a number of impressive signings during the recent transfer window, Tottenham Hotspur are expected to have a strong season by fans and pundits alike.
Not only was Jose Mourinho able to sign key targets such as Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Carlos Vinicius and Matt Doherty, but Tottenham have also been able to ink a deal to bring back Gareth Bale from Real Madrid on a season-long loan deal.
With an extremely deep squad thanks to these new reinforcements, Mourinho now has plenty of ways he could line his Tottenham side up. Here are 4 of them.
#1 4-3-3
A 4-3-3 formation is arguably the Premier League’s most popular right now, with Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool all making use of it. And since he arrived at Tottenham in November 2019, Mourinho has been no different.
In this 4-3-3 line-up, Mourinho has options in defence, but in this version we could see a back four of Ben Davies, Davinson Sanchez, Eric Dier and Matt Doherty. That would allow the Portuguese boss to use another favoured tactic of his – with Davies, Sanchez and Dier forming a back three to cover Doherty’s raids down the right flank.
In midfield, meanwhile, Mourinho would likely favour a duo of deeper-lying midfielders with one more attack-focused one ahead of them. The most likely trio in that case would be holding man Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, metronome Harry Winks, and playmaker Giovani Lo Celso.
Of course, the trio of attackers are where this line-up really shines. Mourinho could now call upon a front three of Son Heung-min, Harry Kane and Gareth Bale. Together, the three could be seen as the Premier League’s most dangerous set of attackers and strike fear into defences all over the land.
#2 3-4-3
Considering Tottenham now have a pair of excellent wing-backs to call upon, Mourinho could well end up plumping for a 3-4-3 formation. This would allow plenty of defensive stability while also allowing Spurs to use their trademark free-flowing attacks.
The Portuguese could call upon a back three of Toby Alderweireld, Dier and Sanchez, although Davies could also play on that left side. Doherty and new signing Sergio Reguilon would then act as flying wing-backs on either flank.
Mourinho would likely want his midfield duo to have steel, strength and style, and a pairing of Hojbjerg and Tanguy Ndombele could work perfectly. Hojbjerg could use his defensive skills to win the ball back, feeding it to Ndombele to make his trademark runs up the pitch.
Finally, the same front trio as the 4-3-3 formation – Son, Kane and Bale – would be likely to start in the biggest games. Of course, Mourinho could also call upon the talents of his other forwards too – names such as Lucas Moura, Erik Lamela, Steven Bergwijn and Carlos Vinicius – should one of his first choice forwards need a rest.
#3 4-3-3 (Europa League & domestic cups)
With Tottenham involved in a crazy amount of games this season, it is likely that Mourinho will use what could amount to a B-team in all but name for group stage matches in the Europa League and in the earlier rounds of the domestic cups.
Given that it’s been his favoured system thus far at Tottenham, a 4-3-3 would probably be the most likely formation, and in this case, we could see second-choice goalkeeper Joe Hart get some minutes. Serge Aurier and Japhet Tanganga could also start these games, with either Sanchez or Alderweireld and either Davies or Reguilon alongside them.
In midfield, Mourinho might look to use Winks as his deepest-lying midfielder in order to rest Hojbjerg, and so Moussa Sissoko could play alongside him in a throwback to the 2019-20 campaign. In front of them, either Lo Celso or Dele Alli could provide the team with some creative spark.
Finally, to allow Kane, Son and Bale some valuable rest time, Mourinho could start with a front trio of Bergwijn, Vinicius and Moura, with Lamela also able to step in where required.
#4 4-2-3-1
Another option Mourinho may look to use – particularly if Alli can ever reach his best form – would be a 4-2-3-1 formation. In this instance, the defence would largely be similar to the one used in Mourinho’s 4-3-3 system, and we’ve plumped for a quartet of Aurier, Dier, Alderweireld and Davies here.
This system would see Tottenham look to use two deeper-lying midfielders, and so Hojbjerg and Winks would probably be the most likely candidates, although Mourinho could replace Winks with Ndombele to make the most of the Frenchman’s driving runs.
The attack is the most interesting, though. With Son and Bale acting as wide-men and Kane as the lone striker, this formation would allow Alli to sit just behind Kane, looking to make his trademark late runs into the box to look for goals.
With the England international remaining one of Tottenham’s most talented stars, this could be the best way to make the most out of him if he remains in North London.
