New Tottenham signing set to miss clash with Leicester City due to work-permit issue

Tottenham are preparing to face Leicester City in their season opener tonight but will have to do so without one of their new signings.

Spurs travel up to the Midlands knowing they need to get off to a winning start after seeing all their nearest rivals around the top six win at the weekend.

Ange Postecoglou, of course, will be calm about things and he’ll simply want to see his Tottenham team put in a good performance.

A busy summer has seen the likes of Dominic Solanke, Wilson Odobert and Archie Gray all sign, while a number of players have been moved on as well.

However, in terms of tonight’s starting XI, it looks like Tottenham will have to do without on newbie.

Tottenham will be without Wilson Odobert to face Leicester City
According to the Evening Standard, Odobert is unavailable to make his debut as the club are still waiting for the paperwork on his work permit.

This comes despite him already being in the country as a Burnley player and will be a disappointing blow to Ange Postecoglou.

Burnley’s Wilson Odobert during the Premier League match between Burnley FC and Nottingham Forest at Turf Moor on May 19, 2024 in Burnley, England.
Photo by Dave Howarth – CameraSport via Getty Images
Odobert, then, looks like he will need to wait for his Tottenham debut.

On the plus side, Archie Gray could get a start after Spurs suspended Yves Bissouma, while Dominic Solanke could come straight into the starting XI.

Lucas Bergvall has impressed coaches in pre-season and could play a part.

Tottenham fans expectant
READ MORE: Ange Postecoglou reveals where he’s going to play Heung-Min Son for Tottenham this season
With more new signings and a second season under Postecoglou, Spurs fans will travel to Leicester in good but expectant spirits.

The fact that Odobert is missing shouldn’t cause too many issues and at the end of the day, the young winger faces a fight to get into the team anyway.

New signing Solanke will be relishing his debut, while the likes of Heung-Min Son and Dejan Kulusevski will want to start fast.

Tottenham, then, will be fully expected to see off one of the promoted teams and make their mark early.

Ange Postecoglou, head coach of Tottenham Hotspur looks on prior to the Joan Gamper Trophy match between FC Barcelona and Tottenham Hotspur at Esta…

English Premier League
Ange Postecoglou has theory why James Maddison’s form dropped last season and has made pre-season change at Tottenham
Lucas Arnold
Lucas Arnold
Mon 19 August 2024 9:35, UK
Perhaps no Tottenham Hotspur player better mirrored Ange Postecoglou’s first season in north London better than James Maddison last term.

Maddison started the season in extraordinary form, he was a key reason why Tottenham were even being tipped for a title challenge in the early months of the campaign.

However, Maddison’s and Spurs’ form and momentum were halted when he and Micky van de Ven suffered key injuries.

The former Leicester City playmaker, who will face his old side on Monday evening, suffered an ankle injury that ruled him out from November until late January.

James Maddison of Tottenham Hotspur during the Pre-Season Friendly match between Tottenham Hotspur and FC Bayern Muenchen at Tottenham Hotspur Stad…

And after Maddison returned, he couldn’t reach the same levels he did prior to his injury, which contributed to Gareth Southgate’s decision to omit him from England’s squad for the Euros.

That being said, when speaking to football.london, Postecoglou has now been sharing what Tottenham have been doing with Maddison in pre-season as they aim to get him back to his best.

Ange Postecoglou says James Maddison’s confidence isn’t an issue at Tottenham
Postecoglou explained that Maddison’s injury was hampering him last season, saying he couldn’t perform at his best.

Sharing his new plan for the £40m-midfielder, Postecoglou said: “I think with Madders, a lot of it last year was the physical element.

“When he wasn’t 100 percent fit, then he couldn’t really perform at the levels he wanted to and even when he came back from injury, I never felt like he reached those physical levels he did earlier in the year.

“So, that’s a real key for him, if he’s training really well and in a good physical condition then I think his game flows from that.

“That’s what we’re trying to do with him, we’ve tried to give him a really strong pre-season to try to push him in a physical way where I think when he feels good about that, the rest of it goes from there rather than him lacking any confidence or self-belief.”

Of course, Maddison now has an opportunity to make a real statement on Monday evening when he faces his former side.

Tottenham will have key player back from injury when they face Leicester at the King Power, aiming to start their top four pursuit immediately.