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Tottenham Hotspur supporters on the Spurs Community forum have been discussing the starting XI they would pick for the Premier League clash against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.

The north London outfit will look to retain their spot in the top four against Pep Guardiola's men, whom they beat 4-4 on aggregate on Wednesday to advance to the semi-finals of the Champions League.

With Moussa Sissoko picking up a groin injury against the Cityzens, and with continued doubts over the fitness of Eric Dier and Harry Winks, one fan believes that Mauricio Pochettino should rotate his side and start centre-back Juan Foyth as a defensive midfielder at the weekend.

The positives

The 21-year-old looks to be ready-made for the role.

He is decent in possession of the ball, loves a tackle and an interception and isn't particularly slow.

Given his centre-back background he should conceivably be disciplined from a positional sense, and that would certainly help him if he was coming up against David Silva, Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne.

Of course, he should also be more reliable than the attack-minded duo of Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen, who would otherwise have to be trusted to perform more defensively against the Premier League champions.

The negatives

On WhoScored the Argentine's weaknesses are listed as his concentration, his discipline and his ability to win aerial duels.

All of those can be crucial traits in a defensive midfield position, and those shortcomings would certainly be a worry against City.

Three yellow cards in 706 minutes on the pitch in the top flight this term is a particularly worrying stat, as he will be coming up against tricky players that could easily get the better of him at the Etihad.

Verdict

So what should Pochettino do?

While it may be tempting to give Foyth a go in this position in the future, he shouldn't do it against a team that will surely be out for revenge as they bid to win the Premier League title.

Playing Victor Wanyama flanked by Alli and Eriksen would still be a safer bet than blooding the South American youngster in such a big game – experience is key.