Tottenham Hotspur will host Crystal Palace in the Premier League this afternoon after sitting out last weekend's action, with their contest against Chelsea postponed due to the Blues' involvement in the Carabao Cup final.
Ange Postecoglou will be eager to stifle the Eagles' 'manager bounce' after Oliver Glasner engineered a big win over Burnley in his first game in the dugout one week ago.
Spurs fell to a bleak home defeat against Wolverhampton Wanderers during their previous fixture, and must now avoid any hiccups to continue their pursuit of Champions League qualification.
Spurs team news vs Crystal Palace
Richarlison has been ruled out of action for up to four weeks with a knee injury suffered in the previous encounter, with the Brazilian's ten goals from ten matches sure to be missed down at N17.
Moreover, Pedro Porro remains on the sidelines after missing the Old Gold loss, though fellow full-back Destiny Udogie is likely to start after overcoming the issue that prevented him from featuring two weeks ago.
Captain Heung-min Son is the likely candidate to serve up top in Richarlison's stead, which means Timo Werner must be unleashed on the wing, ahead of Brennan Johnson.
Why Timo Werner should replace Richarlison
Richarlison's absence is a big blow, there are no two ways about it, but Tottenham do have a wealth of attacking options and Son is hardly ineffective when fielded as the centre-forward.
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Indeed, the South Korean star has posted nine goals and two assists across 12 top-flight fixtures up front this term and has been hailed for his "lethal" finishing by The Athletic's Charlie Eccleshare.
Son's return to the striker's position allows Werner to slot back in on the left, and while the Germany international – who joined from RB Leipzig on loan in January – has yet to score he has impressed with his effort and energy.
Matches played
5
Starts
4
Goals
0
Assists
2
Pass completion
84%
Shots per game
2.4
Key passes per game
1.2
Ball recoveries per game
3.0
Dribbles per game
1.0
Lauded for his "lightning quick" speed by pundit Paul Merson, Werner is the perfect type of player to stretch the Palace backline which shifted to a three-man centre under Glasner's management last weekend.
Joel Ward, on Werner's attacking left side, lost both of his ground duels while also being dribbled past, and if the Austrian chooses to field the same side then Werner could definitely inflict damage through his speed and dynamism.
To emphasise this, the 27-year-old ranks among the top 4% of positional peers across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for progressive carries, the top 12% for progressive passes and the top 15% for shot-creating actions per 90, as per FBref, highlighting both his pace and creative spark that will allow the shifted Son to thrive with a steady stream of support not just reliant on No. 10 James Maddison.
Tottenham must unleash Werner, and even if he doesn't find the back of the net himself, the whiz's qualities will be perfect to send the Lilywhites back into the win column.