A last-gasp equaliser earns Rochdale an FA Cup replay at Wembley as Spurs’ fixture list grows ever longer.
Having pulled off a stunning 2-2 draw at Juventus in midweek, Spurs were on the receiving end of the same scoreline in the rather less evocative surroundings of the Crown Oil Arena.
Coach Mauricio Pochettino made 11 changes to the side that came from two goals down against the Italian champions, and League One strugglers Rochdale responded by going into the break a goal to the good.
New signing Lucas Moura, making his first start, equalised and a Harry Kane penalty turned the tie around, with assists coming from Moussa Sissoko and Dele Alli, only for Steve Davies to restore parity with just seconds to go.
The strike was just reward for an inspired display by Rochdale, but it puts extra strain on a Spurs squad with a major workload to come over the next fortnight.
And that could have repercussions for Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers with Pochettino’s players in their teams.
Five have double-digit ownership figures in FPL, with another two – Jan Vertonghen (9.0%) and Hugo Lloris (8.1%) – not far behind.
Kane (44.2%) and Ben Davies (17.5%) are the most popular, although Gameweek 28’s transfer market is currently delivering mixed messages on the pair, with the former the fifth most sold player and the latter the most purchased.
All will now have to endure a schedule involving five matches in 15 days when they return to action on Sunday with a trip to Crystal Palace in the league.
That match has itself had to be moved from its original Monday night date a week today to early on the Sunday afternoon instead. This, to accommodate the FA Cup replay with Rochdale, which will take place on Wednesday, February 28.
A visit from Huddersfield comes three days later, the conclusion of their Champions League tie with Juventus in the midweek that follows and then a trip to Bournemouth a further three days after that.
It would be a major surprise if Pochettino doesn’t field a very similar side in the replay to the one he put out yesterday, so he’s unlikely to shuffle his pack for the Palace match that precedes it.
But rotation – to a degree – could be on the agenda as he prepares his players for the Juventus clash, marking out the Huddersfield fixture in Gameweek 29 as the obvious place to manage the pitch-time of some key assets.
And any issues of injury or fatigue that arise from the Champions League tie will have an impact on the side for the Bournemouth match that follows.
Pochettino has had to endure the worst of possible worlds across the last two rounds of the FA Cup.
He rang the changes for the trip to Newport County in round four, only to be forced into bringing on his big guns to set up a replay.
The same scenario occurred yesterday, with Kane, Alli and Erik Lamela all introduced in the second half.
Even though his squad is now injury-free, he will be loath to repeat the trick in next week’s replay. Post-match, the Spurs boss was quick to talk up the numerous options at his disposal as the treatment room empties.
“We have all the squad fit and it will be another game to provide players with the chance to compete on Wembley and we have the possibility to reach the quarter finals.”
Davies, Danny Rose, Kieran Trippier and Serge Aurier are all likely to be swapped in and out in the full-back/wing-back positions, although Aurier will be suspended for the Champions League second leg, which should guarantee him a start in the Huddersfield match.
The 90 minutes played by Toby Alderweireld yesterday also adds competition for places at centre-half, while Moura’s goal scoring performance could impact on the pitch-time of Son Heung-min (11.8%), who has now failed to score for seven straight matches in all competitions.
Factor in a potential no-show in Gameweek 31 should they finally make the FA Cup quarter-finals – the winners of the Swansea City/Sheffield Wednesday replay await in that – and an otherwise attractive league schedule is now a nasty mix of potential rotation hotspots and a blank.
This could dent their allure for those managers who were looking to play their Free Hit Chip in Gameweek 31 and take advantage of Spurs’ short-term schedule over the next three Gameweeks (cry HUD bou).
And with matches against Chelsea and Man City to come in Gameweeks 32 and 34 respectively, owning Spurs’ assets suddenly comes with a number of caveats attached.
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