UEFA Champions League 2019-20: Bayern Munich vs Tottenham Hotspur - Combined XI

Centre Backs: Toby Alderweireld and David Alaba

Toby Alderweireld's accuracy with long passing makes him a solid bet for this side

Spurs’ Belgian centre-back Toby Alderweireld has come under criticism at times this season for his lack of pace and issues with positional awareness, but in recent matches under Jose Mourinho, he’s looked back to his imperious best. The veteran is one of the best in the world at playing long, accurate balls from the back – and most recently he set up two goals for Dele Alli in Spurs’ 3-2 win over Bournemouth.

David Alaba meanwhile has been considered one of the strongest defenders in the world for years now, and he remains an important cog in the Bayern Munich machine. The Austrian defender has registered a pass success rate of over 90% in both the Bundesliga and the Champions League, and has scored one goal in league action too.

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Midfield: Joshua Kimmich, Thiago Alcantara, Dele Alli

Dele Alli has looked back to his best under Jose Mourinho

Our trio of midfielders is comprised of two Bayern stalwarts and one Tottenham man who has recently come back to his best form. This was a tough call to make due to both sides having plenty of strong midfielders to choose from.

In the holding midfield spot is Germany’s Joshua Kimmich, who is a superior choice to Tottenham’s Eric Dier due to his better tackling statistics, as well as his skill at passing the ball, averaging 77.9 passes per game compared to Dier’s 48.2.

In terms of a passing-focused pivot, Bayern’s Spanish metronome Thiago Alcantara gets the odd just ahead of Tottenham’s Harry Winks. Both men are fantastic at what they do, but despite both men registering a high pass success rate of 90.8%, Thiago scores higher in terms of dribbling (2.5 per game to 0.7), key passes (0.8 per game to 0.6) and average passes per game (63.3 to 54.5).

Sitting just behind the forward line we have Spurs’ Dele Alli, who seems like a rejuvenated player under new boss Jose Mourinho. Alli is now being deployed in his favoured role – making late runs into the box to link with his central striker, and since Mourinho’s arrival, he’s registered 4 goals and 3 assists, once again becoming one of Spurs’ key men.