Sunderland vs Tottenham: Predicted Starting XI’s – Defoe To Retain Place?

Tottenham Hotspur must travel north to take on Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Saturday evening.

Spurs came from behind to beat Fulham in midweek and will be hoping to make it back-to-back victories on the road to stay in touch with the top four.

Andre Villas-Boas is likely to stick with the majority of the side that beat the Cottagers but he may make a couple of changes to freshen things up with a packed fixture list ahead.

The back five is expected to remain unchanged with Danny Rose still out with a foot injury, but Etienne Capoue is likely to make way in midfield having been withdrawn at half time on Wednesday. Paulinho may drop back alongside Sandro, although Mousa Dembele could be pushing for a recall.

Lewis Holtby is expected to start after coming on to score the winner last time out while Gylfi Sigurdsson may also get a chance to impress. Jermain Defoe could retain his place up front after a decent outing against Fulham, meaning Roberto Soldado may be forced to sit among the subs.

Gus Poyet was proud of his teams efforts against Chelsea on Wednesday but he may be tempted to recall Seb Larsson and Steven Fletcher after seeing his side ultimately lose 4-3.

Here are the predicted line-ups:

What do you think of the line-ups? What would your team be? Share your suggestions below.