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Team news is out for Tottenham Hotspur's upcoming matches in Bavaria! Spurs released their traveling squad today via Twitter and Mauricio Pochettino is opting to field a very strong side in Munich for matches against Real Madrid and either Bayern Munich or AC Milan.
#AudiCup2015 game squad: Vorm, Lloris, McGee; Trippier, Walker, Rose, Davies, Dier, Fazio, Alderweireld, Wimmer, Vertonghen #COYS (1/2)
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) August 3, 2015
#AudiCup2015 game squad: Bentaleb, Mason, Winks, Alli, Dembele, Carroll, Onomah, Eriksen, Lamela, Chadli; Kane #COYS (2/2)
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) August 3, 2015
There are a few notable things to take away from these tweets. First, this is a strong side. In stark contrast to the squad that traveled to Denver, this team is missing most of the youth and development players that got a shot against the MLS All-Stars. Instead, these are the players that are all likely to get significant minutes in the Premier League in this upcoming season.
Second, look closely: Harry Kane is the only recognized striker in the side. No Emmanuel Adebayor, no Roberto Soldado, not even Shaquile Coulthirst. Presumably that means that if Kane needs to be subbed out for rest or injury reasons, we'll either see Nacer Chadli up top or a 4-6-0 striker-less lineup with a false 9.
Third, look who's back -- it's ya boy Ryan Mason! Who knows if Mason will start against Madrid, but it's a good bet that he'll get minutes, especially if Pochettino still sees him as the primary partner to Nabil Bentaleb in the absence of any other signing.
Finally, this roster really sets up a conundrum as to how Spurs are going to rotate the team. With a distinct lack of scrubs to sub in for tired stars, it means a lot of wear and tear on the starting Xi before the EPL season opens at Old Trafford on Saturday. Will Spurs play their starters for a half then rotate out the side? Will any players go 180 minutes in two days? The Audi Cup is dumb.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid also released their Audi Cup squad, and it's missing both Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo.
REAL MADRID SQUAD:
Goalkeepers: Keylor Navas, Casilla and Rubén Yáñez.
Defenders: Varane, Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Nacho, Marcelo, Carvajal, Arbeloa and Danilo.
Midfielders: Kroos, James, Bale, Casemiro, Modric, Cheryshev, Isco, Illarra, Asensio and Odegaard.
Forwards: Jesé, Lucas Vázquez and Borja Mayoral.
Sure, there's no Benzema or Ronaldo, but there's still plenty of firepower in that Madrid squad. We might get to see 16-year old prodigy Martin Odegaard play! And oh look, there's our good friends Luka Modric and Gareth Bale. I'm sure having to play them for the first time since they left us won't be awkward at all.