Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur should start against Arsenal this weekend despite strong competition, club insider John Wenham has claimed.
The Lowdown: Massive game ahead
Spurs have a massive game on the horizon on Saturday lunchtime as they make the short trip to the Emirates Stadium to take on the Gunners.
It is one of the biggest Premier League matches of the season so far, with Antonio Conte knowing that victory for his team will see them overtake their table-topping rivals.
The manager may have a few selection headaches going into the game, not least in midfield, with Yves Bissouma and Oliver Skipp both hoping to feature.
The Latest: Bentancur backed to start
However, speaking to Football Insider, Wenham backed Bentancur to get the nod in the middle of the park at the Emirates this weekend, having scored in the 6-2 thrashing of Leicester in Tottenham's last match.
The Spurs insider, who regularly breaks news about the club on his Lilywhite Rose social media channels - said:
"It was brilliant to see Bentancur on the scoresheet. He doesn’t get many goals, he hadn’t scored in such a long time but he took the finish really, really well. He’s never even looked like scoring for Tottenham before that.
"That’s fine though, he is a holding midfielder. We have other players to get the goals and we saw that with Son when he came on.
"I just think Bentancur is such an important player. When he didn’t play against West Ham a few weeks ago we just didn’t look the same and, obviously, we couldn’t get the win in that one.
"The goal helped his chances of staying in the side too. Bissouma is still chomping at the bit to be involved and we have Skippy coming back too.
"So he has made a strong and huge case because, as I have said before, I think Skipp will come back in once he is fit."
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The Verdict: Makes complete sense
It is very healthy to have such strong competition for places in midfield, but it makes perfect sense for Conte to go with Bentancur alongside Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg against Arsenal.
Bissouma is still adjusting to his new surroundings, having only started one league match so far this season, while Skipp is lacking match fitness after returning from injury.
As Welham referenced, Bentancur was missed against West Ham as Spurs could only manage a 1-1 draw, while Cristian Romero has described his team-mate as an 'animal', and it would be a surprise if he didn't take to the field from the start this weekend.
With a goal and assist against Leicester seeing him ranked as Tottenham's second-best player that day according to Sofascore, it would make perfect sense to keep him in the team for the crunch North London Derby.