Who should start for Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League final on Wednesday?

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There are no more unnecessary distractions.

Tottenham Hotspur’s 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa on Friday evening means that they have played their last game before the Europa League final against Manchester United on Wednesday evening.

Ange Postecoglou hinted in his pre-match press conference that he would rest key players but it was a more radical line-up than anybody expected. Sergio Reguilon made his first start in the Premier League for Spurs since April 2022 while 17-year-old winger Mikey Moore featured on the right wing.

Club-record signing Dominic Solanke came off the bench in the second-half along with Richarlison, Brennan Johnson, Rodrigo Bentancur and Yves Bissouma but defenders Micky van de Ven, Cristian Romero and Destiny Udogie were left out of the squad.

There are a couple of key decisions Postecoglou needs to make before they face United. With James Maddison, Lucas Bergvall and Dejan Kulusevski all ruled out through injury, who should start in midfield?

Postecoglou has some decisions to make ahead of Wednesday’s big game (Carl Recine/Getty Images)

Postecoglou experimented with Wilson Odobert in a central attacking midfield role against Villa but did he do enough to earn a place in the starting XI in Bilbao? Is Son Heung-min sharp enough to start on the left wing and make a decisive impact?

Here, The Athletic suggests who should start against United on Wednesday evening.

Goalkeeper — Guglielmo Vicario

This is an easy choice. Antonin Kinsky has an impressive passing range but Guglielmo Vicario’s leadership will be crucial. The Italy international can look shaky at times from corners and with the ball at his feet but his shot-stopping is superb.

Right-back — Pedro Porro

Pedro Porro has somehow avoided injury this season while nearly all of the rest of the squad have suffered with different issues. With Maddison, Bergvall and Kulusevski unavailable, Spurs are desperately lacking in creativity. Porro’s excellent vision and ability to whip crosses into the box will be crucial. Postecoglou did not shoot down the suggestion in his pre-match press conference that Porro could play in central midfield but it would be an extremely risky gamble.

(Ben Stansall/AFP via Getty Images)

Right-sided centre-back — Cristian Romero

Cristian Romero has made a few high-profile errors this season, including losing Gabriel from a corner for Arsenal’s winner in September’s north London derby, but his aggressiveness and line-breaking passes are integral to Postecoglou’s style of play.

The Argentina international effortlessly slips passes in between opposition players to quickly progress the ball and unsettles strikers by pursuing them across the pitch. Kevin Danso was arguably Tottenham’s best player against Villa as he made multiple blocks and tackles. The 26-year-old might be a useful option off the bench if Spurs want to defend a lead, which is what happened in the second leg of their quarter-final against Eintracht Frankfurt, but Romero will certainly start.

Left-sided centre-back — Micky van de Ven

There is an argument to be made that van de Ven is the most important player to Postecoglou’s philosophy. Van de Ven’s extreme speed is vital to the high defensive line and eliminating dangerous counter-attacks. He ranks highly amongst centre-backs in the Premier League for ball recoveries with 10.4 per 1,000 opponent touches.

The Netherlands international can charge forward with the ball too which is what happened in September’s 3-0 victory over United at Old Trafford.

Can de Ven provided a memorable assist at Old Trafford this season (Carl Recine/Getty Images)

Left-back — Destiny Udogie

A couple of months ago, it seemed like Djed Spence had replaced Destiny Udogie as the first-choice left-back. Spence was excellent in possession and defended diligently while Udogie returned to full fitness following a hamstring injury.

It felt like a bold call when Postecoglou started Udogie ahead of Spence in the first leg of their quarter-final against Frankfurt. Yet, Udogie was exceptional in both legs and the semi-final.

After Friday’s defeat to Villa, The Athletic asked Postecoglou why he had left Romero, van de Ven and Udogie out of the squad while Vicario and Porro were unused substitutes.

“For us there’s no point bringing them here, they weren’t going to play today,” he said. “They stayed at home, they did a really strong (training) session and come Wednesday, knock on wood, they are all available and that’s the most important thing. That’s the primary thing. When those guys play, that back four with Vic in goal, our chances of success significantly improve.”

Central midfield — Rodrigo Bentancur

Bentancur’s performances over the last few months have underlined why he has pushed ahead of Bissouma as the first-choice holding midfielder. Data taken before Friday’s fixture showed that on average Bentancur makes 5.3 interceptions per 1,000 opposition touches which is more than any other midfielder with a minimum of 900 minutes in the Premier League this season.

The 27-year-old is excellent at blocking passing lanes and ranks second for ball recoveries (11.5 per 1,000 opposition touches). He will definitely start.

(Ben Stansall/AFP via Getty Images)

Central midfield — Yves Bissouma

Postecoglou criticised Bissouma following a 2-0 defeat to Fulham in March and said that he “can let games pass him by.” Injuries have opened up the door for the Mali international whose erratic form is a constant frustration.

Bissouma and Bentancur need to work together to limit the influence of United’s captain Bruno Fernandes in Bilbao.

Central midfield — Pape Matar Sarr

Pape Sarr came off in the 51st minute against Villa with discomfort in his back. Postecoglou said he “didn’t think it was anything too significant.” Then again, he uttered nearly the exact same line when Kulusevski suffered a knee injury last weekend which later required surgery.

If Sarr is fit, he could cause United problems with his late runs into the box and ability to score from distance. This is a functional and combative midfield which lacks a little bit of magic. However, Tottenham’s best results this season, including their 4-0 victory over Manchester City at the Etihad, have come when they have had less possession.

United thrive in transition which means Spurs could have a lot of success if they sit deeper, which is what happened against Frankfurt and Bodo/Glimt, and challenge their opponents to break them down. Sarr’s defensive instincts would help in that scenario.

(David Balogh/Getty Images)

The alternative option is to start Odobert, Solanke or even Moore as a No 10. But that would feel like an extremely risky experiment for such an important game.

Right wing — Brennan Johnson

Johnson is Tottenham’s top scorer in all competitions this season with 17 goals. At times it can feel like he doesn’t contribute too much and can fade out of games, but he always attacks the back post in anticipation of the ball being crossed.

United play a 3-4-3 formation under Ruben Amorim and push their wing-backs high. There could, therefore, be a lot of space for Johnson to exploit behind them.

Striker — Dominic Solanke

The biggest dilemma with Solanke is whether to drop him into the No 10 position and start Richarlison as the centre-forward. Solanke is integral to the way Spurs press and he stretches defences with his off ball runs. He is much better technically than Richarlison and is adept at holding the ball up before laying it off to his team-mates. Solanke, then, surely needs to start in his favoured position.

(Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

Left-wing — Wilson Odobert

This is the most difficult decision to make. Son Heung-min and Harry Kane have been Spurs’ most important players over the last decade. The 32-year-old spoke passionately to South Korean media at the beginning of the week and said: “the biggest reason I stayed at Tottenham was because I wanted to do something others couldn’t achieve. That’s probably why I’m where I am now. You need all the pieces to complete a puzzle.”

It would be a huge shame if he did not win a trophy during his time with Spurs but emotion should not impact this decision. Son looked lively in the first-half against Villa, which was his first start in more than a month following a foot injury, yet there have been too many times this season when he has been sluggish and slowed down attacks.

Richarlison started on the left wing for both legs against Bodo/Glimt but the thought of Wilson Odobert or Mathys Tel attacking United’s centre-backs with their speed is too tempting. I’m going for Odobert because his ability to dribble past defenders and create space for others will be crucial with Maddison and Kulusevski ruled out.

(Header photo: Michael Steele/Getty Images)

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