Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane will start the Champions League final against Liverpool in Madrid, with Lucas Moura the unlucky man dropping to the bench.
Kane declared himself fit for the match after seven weeks out, leaving manager Mauricio Pochettino to decide whether to alter the Spurs lineup that dramatically beat Ajax in the semifinals.
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And Pochettino has opted to include the England captain, the club’s leading scorer this season which means Moura, who scored a hat trick against Ajax in the semifinal second-leg, has to settle for a place on the bench.
#THFC: Lloris (C), Trippier, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Rose, Winks, Sissoko, Eriksen, Dele, Son, Kane. @WilliamHill latest (18+) https://t.co/1HRJd1Kg3B#UCLfinal ⚪️ #COYS pic.twitter.com/llnpxbjrdn
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) June 1, 2019
Kane, who has made a full recovery from an ankle ligament injury, is joined in the XI by Harry Winks who has not played since the 1-0 Champions League win against Manchester City on April 9.
Kane has not played since the quarterfinal first leg against Manchester City on April 9, with Lucas Moura, Fernando Llorente and Son Heung-Min scoring crucial goals in his absence.
Speaking on Friday, Pochettino had refused to be drawn on whether or not Kane would start or play a role off the bench and said he would not take a decision until after training.
“It’s difficult to put yourself in my place,” he said. “It’s not going to be easy to take a decision and every game you need to take a decision.
“You can use only 11 players from the beginning — that is the most painful situation. The whole squad will be on the pitch before the game tomorrow.
“Tomorrow is to show togetherness. Tomorrow will show football is a collective sport, the energy even from the players who do not play in the dressing room will be decisive.”
As expected, Brazilian forward Roberto Firmino starts for Liverpool after coming back from a groin injury, with Divock Origi, who scored twice in the 4-0 semi-final, second leg win over Barcelona on the bench.
Tottenham Hotspur (4-2-3-1): Hugo Lloris; Kieran Trippier, Toby Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen, Danny Rose; Harry Winks, Moussa Sissoko; Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen; Son Heung-min, Harry Kane.
Liverpool (4-3-3): Alisson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joel Matip, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson; Fabinho, Jordan Henderson, Georginio Wijnaldum; Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane.
Information from Reuters was used in this report.
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