90min
·26 July 2024
Vissel Kobe vs Tottenham: Preview, predictions and lineups
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·26 July 2024
Tottenham Hotspur have travelled to Asia as part of their pre-season preparations and will face Japanese side Vissel Kobe in a friendly this Saturday.
Spurs have been busy in pre-season already with three matches under their belts. Ange Postecoglou's side have run out victors in all of their outings, starting with a behind-closed-doors triumph over Cambridge United and followed up by 5-1 and 2-0 wins over Hearts and Queens Park Rangers respectively.
The Lilywhites haven't been tested too thoroughly in their friendlies but should be offered a sterner challenge by Vissel Kobe. The J1 League outfit are halfway through their domestic season and sit fourth in the division following a run of five games without defeat.
Here is 90min's guide to Tottenham's clash with Vissel Kobe.
This is the first meeting between Vissel Kobe and Tottenham.
Vissel Kobe have ten days before their next competitive match after their friendly with Spurs, meaning they may opt for a first-team starting XI.
There won't be many recognisable faces for Spurs supporters among their opponents' squad, but the north London side must keep close tabs on winger Yoshinori Muto and striker Yuya Osako who lead the way for goal contributions with 11 each for Vissel Kobe in J1 League.
Vissel Kobe predicted lineup vs Tottenham (4-4-2): Maekawa; Hirose, Yamakawa, Thuler, Hatsuse; Muto, Ideguchi, Ogihara, Patrick; Osako, Sasaki.
Bissouma scored last time out / Peter Nicholls/GettyImages
Tottenham are still without some of their first-teamers after this summer's international frenzy, with the likes of Micky van de Ven, Giovani Lo Celso and Cristian Romero missing. However, Postecoglou will be able to field a strong lineup against Vissel Kobe, with the majority of his top performers available.
Son Heung-min, James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski are among the big names expected to start in Tokyo, while new recruits Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray should feature. The former was withdrawn after just 26 minutes against QPR but has travelled to Japan and returned to training.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has played his last match for Tottenham after sealing a move to Marseille.
Tottenham predicted lineup vs Vissel Kobe (4-3-3): Austin; Porro, Gray, Skipp, Donley; Sarr, Bissouma, Maddison; Kulusevski, Son, Werner.
Tottenham have been ruthless in pre-season so far having netted 14 across their three games and they should notch a few against Vissel Kobe. Most of their attacking stars are available, while the Japanese side have struggled for clean sheets recently.
Vissel Kobe do score goals though and a weakened Spurs defence that is missing some senior centre-backs could be left exposed.