Cristian Romero has returned to the Tottenham Hotspur starting XI for their Premier League match against Leeds United, which will finish 1-1, according to Chris Sutton.
Speaking ahead of Saturday’s fixture, Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank confirmed that Romero is fit after missing Tuesday’s Champions League draw against Bodo/Glimt.
“Romero is fit and available and will start tomorrow”, he said. “That is promising news. That was contact to the foot and I think medical did a good job to get that turned around.”
And Frank wasn’t lying, bringing his captain straight back into the team for the trip to Elland Road.
Former Leeds players Djed Spence and Archie Gray were named among the substitutes.
Daniel Farke, meanwhile, named an unchanged XI from last weekend’s draw with Bournemouth.
The last time these two sides met was on the final day of 2022/23, with Spurs winning 4-1 at Elland Road as Leeds went back down to the Championship following relegation.
In their last three matches against the Whites, Spurs have scored four goals in victories.
However, former Premier League striker Sutton thinks it will be a 1-1 draw between Spurs and Leeds, who have “really surprised and impressed” him this season.
“Fair play to Leeds, they have really surprised and impressed me so far,” he told the BBC. “There is a good balance to their team because they carry a threat and can dig in too.
“Apart from a heavy defeat at Arsenal, they have been competitive in every game so far and their good start would have been even better but for late goals against Fulham and Bournemouth.
“Even so, they have got more points than I expected at this stage and Daniel Farke deserves a lot of credit.
“I think there were question marks over whether he could manage at this level because of his Premier League record with Norwich but, as I’ve said before, he never really had the squad there to be able to compete.
“Tottenham have had a difficult week, having to fight back to rescue draws against Wolves and Bodo/Glimt, and this is going to be another tricky game for them.
“I can actually see it ending in another draw for Spurs. At least they played in the Arctic Circle on Tuesday night rather than Wednesday, but a lunchtime kick-off on Saturday is still far from ideal, and this Champions League campaign is going to stretch their squad.”
Spurs go into Saturday’s match fifth in the Premier League with only one defeat from their opening six matches, while Leeds are 12th.