Dele Alli is set to miss the start of the new Premier League campaign after picking up yet another hamstring problem.
The 23-year-old featured in both games against Real Madrid and Bayern Munich in the Audi Cup last week but unfortunately missed out against Inter Milan on Sunday.
Alli wasn't the only one to be absent as Juan Foyth joined the likes of Ben Davies, Serge Aurier, Eric Dier and Victor Wanyama on the sidelines following the ankle injury he sustained against Bayern.
Mauricio Pochettino was asked about Alli's fitness after the penalty shootout defeat against the Nerazzurri and he stated that the England international looks set to miss the Premier League opener against Aston Villa on Saturday evening.
"I don’t know if the club communicate the time but I don’t believe he's going to be ready for the start of the season," he said.
Alli won't be the only attacking player missing against Dean Smith's side as Son Heung-min is also suspended for the game following the red card he picked up in the penultimate league match of the 2018/19 campaign at Bournemouth.
So, how could Spurs start at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday without the duo?
Here we take a look at two different formations the manager could go with against the newly-promoted side.
The first formation is the one Pochettino used in Sunday's friendly and the only change to the team would see Toby Alderweireld come into the side in place of Davinson Sanchez.
Harry Winks would once again be at the base of a midfield diamond behind Moussa Sissoko and Tanguy Ndombele, with then one of Erik Lamela or Christian Eriksen at the tip behind Lucas Moura and Harry Kane upfront.
The manager could also choose to go with a 4-2-3-1 formation for the game against Villa and it would see one of Winks, Sissoko or Ndombele miss out.
Pochettino claimed after the game that the club-record signing still needs time to adapt to life at Spurs and that may see him start on the bench with Winks and Sissoko resuming their partnership in midfield.
That in turn would see both Eriksen and Lamela start alongside Lucas in a three behind Kane.
Although it doesn't look good on the injury front at present with the new campaign beginning this weekend, Pochettino does have options for when Villa make the trip to north London.
