Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou has backed Radu Dragusin to grasp his opportunity with the January recruit primed to make his full debut at Fulham on Saturday.
Micky Van de Ven has been ruled out of the London derby with a minor hamstring injury, which is only set to sideline the Dutch defender until after the international break.
Van de Ven’s absence will hand Dragusin a first start since his move from Genoa in a transfer that could rise to £25million.
“I’ll take the suspense out of it. He’ll start tomorrow,” Postecoglou revealed.
“It’s a good opportunity for him. We obviously brought him in with a view that it was evident we were very short in that area and he’d had a very good half-season in Italy.
“He’s had to be patient and I said to him when we signed him I couldn’t tell him when he’d get an opportunity but he would get an opportunity.
“I thought he did well when he came on the other day (against Aston Villa). It was good that the team was already in a good rhythm but the scoreline was still 0-0.
“He contributed to how we finished the game. He’s a pretty assured young guy. He has belief in himself, he has really good people around him.
“I think he can bring something to the team. He’s a very strong defender, very good in the duels and I think we’re going to need that tomorrow.
“More than anything that half-an-hour at least gives him that game-time he needs at the level.
“He was exposed to a very good team and some very good opposition players. I think that will help him tomorrow, particularly at the beginning of the game.”
While Spurs will be without centre-back Van de Ven at Craven Cottage, Richarlison could return after a knee injury.
The prognosis for Manor Solomon is not positive, with the former Fulham loanee no closer to being fit again.
Solomon has not played since September due to a right knee injury.
Postecoglou said: “Yeah, no real progress. He’s still in that position of not being really comfortable where he’s at.
“So, we’ll give him the time he needs to be in the palace where he can recover. The medical team is looking at some other strategies now.
“Micky, nothing too significant. He’ll miss tomorrow, but we’re quite confident if the recovery goes well with the international break, he shouldn’t miss too much more.
“I think he came off at the right time to be honest, so while he misses tomorrow, it’s still positive.
“Richy, he trained today so we’ll just see how he pulls up. If he pulls up OK, he’ll probably be available.”
Postecoglou not motivated by denting Arsenal's title hopes in north London derby
Ange Postecoglou insists Tottenham must focus on themselves heading into the north London derby with Arsenal, rather than on denting their rivals' Premier League title hopes.
With four matches remaining, the Gunners are a point clear at the summit from reigning champions Manchester City, who still have a game in hand on Mikel Arteta's side in second place.
While Arsenal look to stay very much in the hunt for a first league crown in 20 years, fifth-place Tottenham will aim to reduce their six-point deficit to fourth-place Aston Villa, on whom they have two games in hand.
Spurs are winless in the last three north London derbies - winning just one of the most recent six - though they twice came from behind to earn a point in September's reverse fixture at the Emirates Stadium.
And Postecoglou has his sights firmly set on beating his side's rivals, and says his players are not driven by the prospect of thwarting their opponents' title bid.
"Not in terms of that as a motivation," he said when asked if he would like to dent Arsenal's title hopes.
"I understand the importance of winning against your traditional rival. I never believe your motivation should revolve around the demise of somebody else.
"Your motivation should be about yourself. We can win on Sunday, but it doesn't mean we are title contenders this year. I want to win because I want us to progress. I want us to be in a position fighting for the title.
"If that's your kind of measure, always peering over the back fence to see what your neighbour's building, you could both have the worst houses in the street because everyone else is building beautiful places, and you're looking over the back fence."
Leicester City seal automatic Premier League return
Leicester City are once more a Premier League team, having bounced straight back after relegation last season.
The Foxes secured automatic promotion without kicking a ball, as title rivals Leeds United lost 4-0 away to Queens Park Rangers on Friday.
Marti Cifuentes' Hoops side gave their fans a reason to cheer in their final home game of the season, and the emphatic win means they are now seven points clear of the relegation zone.
The Hoops boss told BBC Sport: "I came here, perhaps I was crazy thinking we could manage the great escape.
"The atmosphere has been unbelievable since I came here. Everybody thought tonight could be a special night to achieve our target.
"Big players deliver big performances and our players all did that tonight."
Defeat ensured only Ipswich Town can now finish above Leicester, meaning the Foxes will be back in the big time.
Ipswich, who have three games left to play, face play-off hopefuls Hull City on Saturday.
Speaking to BBC Sport, Leeds boss Daniel Farke said: "It's not in our hands any more [automatic promotion], we need to be honest.
"The race is not over. If Ipswich win the next two games then I will say congratulations, but if they don’t win them then we will have a lot to play for.
"As long as we have a chance, I’m far away from giving up."
Leicester could be crowned champions if they beat Preston North End on Monday and if Hull beat Ipswich.
The Foxes are looking to break the 100-point barrier, despite a wobble from Enzo Maresca's side in recent months.
After they had been so far ahead and top for all but two of the 176 days between 23 September and 17 March, an untimely dip in form handed Leeds and Ipswich hope.
However, while Leicester celebrate their promotion, they face the daunting prospect of starting next season with a points deduction, after they were charged by the Premier League with alleged breaches of the competition's Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR).
Nashville SC v San Jose Earthquakes: ‘A win would change everything’ - Godoy
Anibal Godoy insists that Nashville are already looking at their game against San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday as a must-win.
Nashville have won just once in the MLS this season and sit in 14th place in the Eastern Conference after a run of four without a win.
The Earthquakes, meanwhile, are bottom of the Western Conference having lost eight of their matches and recording just one win.
Godoy is aware of how their poor start to the season could affect their playoff hopes later down the line but is confident that Nashville can turn things around.
He said: “For us, it's an important week. It's a day we have to win, or we'll start to feel the pressure from other teams as they start to separate in the table.
“This league is long but if we want to get to the playoff you have to win games early on, especially at home.”
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