Antonio Conte has confirmed that one of Harry Winks or Tanguy Ndombele will replace Oliver Skipp in the Tottenham team to face Leeds United.
A regular in the Spurs side since returning from his hugely successful loan spell at Norwich City last campaign, Skipp will be absent for the visit of Marcelo Bielsa's men through suspension.
Picking up his fifth yellow card of the season last time out at Everton to earn a one-match ban, the England U21 international will have to sit out Sunday's game but he will be available next week for the NS Mura and Burnley encounters.
Having plenty of options to choose from in midfield, both Winks and Ndombele, who have been training with Conte and his coaching staff over the past fortnight after missing out on international selection, will be doing all they can to get the nod.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference ahead of the game, the new Spurs boss said: "In this moment I have to proceed because Skippy he can't play, he was banned for one game. In the previous games we played with Skippy and Hojbjerg.
"Also we have to see, I hope today to have Hojbjerg with the team, because he also was injured in the last week and didn't work.
"Then there is one between Winky and Tanguy Ndombele. (Laughs) Not many chances but we have to go."
Ndombele has featured in Conte's first two games as Spurs boss but has had to make do with minutes off the bench.
Clearly a talented player who can be a huge hit for the Lilywhites due to the qualities in his locker, Tottenham's previous managers have struggled to get the very best out of him on a consistent basis.
That will now be down to Conte to solve as he looks to get the Frenchman playing at the top of his game once again.
"Yeah, I have seen that many managers struggle about this situation, about the position," he told football.london. "For sure Tanguy has the quality. At the same time he has to understand that there is a team and he has to play into the team.
"I think it means that it is important to keep order and to do what the position asks you to do.
"For sure with Tanguy we are working. We are working very hard. He has to work much more than the others, because as you say he has talent but he has to put this talent into the team for the best of the team, not for the single player.
"In my football I have an idea and in this idea there are tasks for the players. Every single player has to know what he has to do. Otherwise if every player just goes and runs around the pitch, I think it will be a mess."
