Fourth choice left back may prove best option for Spurs

Danny Rose may have profited from some game time at Sunderland last season, starting 25 Premier League fixtures, but he could realistically be considered the fourth choice left back for Tottenham in the upcoming campaign.

However, this does not mean that he shouldn’t get the nod over Benoit Assou-Ekotto, Jan Vertonghen and Kyle Naughton if Tottenham are to have their best chance of finishing in the top four, which can be backed at 19/10.

Reasons for Vertonghen needing to start at centre back aside, Spurs’ probable midfield selections offer enough defensive protection to pick two attacking full-backs.

Sandro, Paulinho and Mousa Dembele could all potentially start together in Spurs’ three-man midfield and although the latter two can influence play from an attacking sense, they are not what are widely considered to be attacking midfielders.

There is also the growing likelihood that Gareth Bale will start on the right, allowing him to cut inside and rifle in countless shots with his left foot.

This could result in Aaron Lennon switching flanks too, while Lewis Holtby or Clint Dempsey could play from the left.

With two wingers more likely to drift inside than reach the byline in this setup, there will be extra onus on the full-backs to provide width and the midfield picks should give them licence to get forward.

Based on last season, Andre Villas-Boas is not Assou Ekotto’s biggest fan and Vertonghen’s biggest strength is not his overlapping, marauding runs. Meanwhile, Naughton would ideally battle with Kyle Walker for the same role on the right-side.

This leaves Rose, who clearly has some attacking flair as he first broke through as a winger and has reportedly been told by Villas-Boas recently that he will be remaining with the club this season.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.