Tottenham will be boosted by the return of James Maddison for tonight’s FA Cup showdown with Manchester City.

Maddison had been missing since injuring his ankle ligaments in the defeat by Chelsea on November 6 but has trained all week, and head coach Ange Postecoglou has said he is “ready to start” against the treble winners this evening.

If Maddison goes straight back into the Spurs starting XI, then Dejan Kulusevski, who has recovered from illness, could move into the front three with out-of-form Brennan Johnson the most likely forward to give way.

Postecoglou has a decision to make in midfield, with Oliver Skipp and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg both pushing to start alongside Rodrigo Bentancur.

Ben Davies is back in training after a hamstring injury but unlikely to start, especially as Spurs’ first-choice backline are all now seemingly fit.

New signing Radu Dragusin can expect to be among the substitutes again but Timo Werner is a good option to play from the left.

Giovani Lo Celso (muscle), Alejo Veliz and Manor Solomon (both knee) remain sidelined, along with Ryan Sessegnon.

Captain Heung-min Son is away at the Asian Cup with South Korea, while Mali midfielder Yves Bissouma and Senegal’s Pape Matar Sarr are both at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Tottenham predicted XI (4-3-3): Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Bentancur, Skipp, Maddison; Werner, Kulusevski, Richarlison

Injured: Lo Celso, Solomon, Veliz, Sessegnon

Unavailable: Son (Asian Cup), Bissouma, Sarr (Both AFCON)

Time and date: 8pm GMT on Friday January 26, 2024

Venue: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium