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James Maddison and two Tottenham players can avoid Premier League ban on one condition

James Maddison
-Credit:Getty Images


The midway point of the Premier League season is nearly upon us and Tottenham are not where they would have hoped to have been.

Ange Postecoglou's men currently lurk in 12th place in the table after 18 games, winning just seven and falling to nine defeats. Despite eye-catching victories over Manchester United, Manchester City and Aston Villa, Spurs have lost to Crystal Palace, Ipswich Town and Nottingham Forest.

The good news is that the north Londoners are six points behind Newcastle in fifth place and with so many points still up for grabs, the 2024/25 campaign could still play out to be a successful one.

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Unfortunately, the injury list at Hotspur Way means Postecoglou is working with limited resources. Key players such as Guglielmo Vicario, Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven are all currently unavailable.

As we approach matchday 19, the entire Premier League is close to the suspension threshold. Yellow card cautions reaching a tally of five before matchday 20 face a one-match ban for players.

Yves Bissouma is the only Tottenham player who has been forced to miss a game after reaching five bookings but Spurs have three players currently on four. Van de Ven won't receive a suspension due to him being unavailable for the game against Wolves but Rodrigo Bentancur and James Maddison are walking a tightrope.

Both players are currently on four and should they receive a yellow card against Wolves, they will be suspended for the visit of the in-form Newcastle on January 4. Bentancur, of course, remains suspended anyway after the Football Association upheld his ban for using a racial slur about team-mate Son Heung-min on television.

Eddie Howe's men could face their own suspension worries for the trip to the capital. Sandro Tonali and Fabian Schar both sit on four yellow cards and will be suspended if booked in Monday's trip to Manchester United.