Crystal Palace boss thinks Tottenham have signed a 'top' Premier League player, hails 5 Spurs dangermen
Today at 01:45 PM
It is testament to the strength in depth at Tottenham Hotspur these days that not even Heung-Min Son’s injury has Crystal Palace Oliver Glasner breathing a sigh of relief.
The Spurs captain – South Korean superstar Son was labelled the prototype of the modern-day winger this week after breaking into the Premier League’s top 20 all-time goalscorers – is a major doubt ahead of Sunday’s trip to Selhurst Park.
Ange Postecoglou confirmed that, after Son missed Thursday’s win over AZ Alkmaar, his number seven is ‘unlikely’ to be available away to Crystal Palace.
In the two top-flight games Tottenham have played without Son this season, however, Postecoglou’s team have scored five goals. Three of those came in the thumping win at Manchester United.
The London giants now have the option of bringing in Timo Werner. Or, instead, shifting Brennan Johnson to the left in order to introduce a sparkling Dejan Kulusevski on the right.
Richarlison scored the winner as Spurs defeated AZ in the Europa League. He will also be hoping for a start.
And, in £65 million record signing Dominic Solanke, Postecoglou also has a centre-forward with six goal contributions in his last seven outings at club level.
Crystal Palace boss highlights Tottenham depth despite Heung-Min Son concerns
“[Tottenham will bring] intensity, runs, pace, high quality,” Glasner said during his pre-match press conference. “I just heard that maybe Son is not available but, you know, they've bought Solanke. A top striker of the Premier League.
“They have Brennan Johnson. He’s in great shape, a lot of pace. They have Kulusevski. Richarlison had his comeback [against Alkmaar]. They have Timo Werner.
“They have a very good midfield, they have a lot of pace in defence, so it’s all about intensity.”
Struggling Crystal Palace can only dream of such depth in the forward areas.
Monday’s 1-0 loss at Nottingham Forest left The Eagles nesting in the relegation positions. With Michael Olise’s departure to Bayern Munich creating a massive hole that is yet to be filled by either Daichi Kamada or Ismaila Sarr, Palace’s tally of five goals is now the lowest of any Premier League side.
Even on home soil, few will give Glasner’s outfit much of a chance of righting those wrongs against a Tottenham outfit looking to cut the four-point gap between themselves and the Champions League spots.
"We know it’s a very good team. They are in good shape,” adds Glasner, a Europa League winner with Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022. “I watched yesterday’s game against AZ Alkmaar, where they had a lot of changes in the squad. It just shows the strength of their team.
"They always play their style, regardless of which team they’re playing, so a big credit to their manager.
“It will be challenging, but we also think that we will get our chances. We will get our opportunities, and then it’s to be efficient, to score from it. I think we won't get ten clear chances, but we will get two, three, four.
“And then [the challenge] is to score from it."
Ange Postecoglou says Mikey Moore ready for first Premier League start
Postecoglou gave little away when discussing who could potentially start in Son’s place in South London.
But he did indicate that Spurs’ teen sensation – Mickey Moore blew away the Dutch press with a ‘wonderful’ display which drew comparisons from James Maddison to Brazil icon Neymar – had now proven himself capable of being relied upon at senior level.
“He is ready to start any game,” Postecoglou says of 17-year-old Moore. “But I just feel, and especially with young players, you need to be really careful with their introduction into senior football.
“Even last year, he didn’t really have a full season of football. He had quite a few injuries, a couple of injuries that kept him out. And he went from playing Under-18s football to playing very little Under-21s football before we integrated him.
“You have to look at that and I think he is still physically growing. You take that into account. I think he’s ready to start a Premier League game, for sure. For us what we want to do is to continue to develop Mikey in the right way and give him a platform to keep improving.
“So far whatever we’ve asked of him he’s made a real impact and the plan is to continue to do that.”
Last night all good, no issues but obviously a bit of fatigue with some of the boys as they haven’t played for a while but all good. Sonny is still not right or feeling 100%. He won’t train today and so unlikely for the weekend and we’ll see how he is beyond that.
