Premier League: How Tottenham Hotspur Will Line Up Against Liverpool

English football's festive fixture list gets well and truly underway this weekend, which for Tottenham Hotspur, means a potential Christmas cracker versus top four rival Liverpool.

Putting seasonal phrases and puns aside for the time being (get used to them as they are out in force already), this is undoubtedly a big game for both teams.

A win for Tottenham would see them go level on points with the currently second-placed Reds. With trips to Manchester City and Chelsea coming up post-Boxing Day, Liverpool will want to continue the winning momentum established in the recent thrashings of Norwich City and West Ham United.

Spurs have had mixed fortunes against their fellow competitors for Champions League places this season. They were unlucky not to take more than a point in their home draws with Chelsea and Manchester United and on the road at Everton. The losses suffered away at Arsenal and Manchester City were deserved, however.

Beyond taking three points, beating Brendan Rodgers and his Luis Suarez-inspired side would be a terrific statement in itself for Spurs as they look to push on.

After changing things up for Thursday's Europa League win over Anzhi Makhachkala, manager Andre Villas-Boas' stating lineup for Sunday will likely look a lot like the one that won at Sunderland last weekend.

Hugo Lloris will return in goal, keen to find a little form after a couple of mistakes in recent weeks.

Kyle Walker and Michael Dawson will almost certainly be back in defence after being rested for Anzhi. Should he prove his fitness in time, Vlad Chiriches could return alongside the Spurs skipper. If not, Etienne Capoue is likely to deputise in central defence for the third game in a row.

Despite playing 45 minutes versus Anzhi, Villas-Boas appeared to indicate post-match that Liverpool might be too soon for Danny Rose.

"It will take time for Danny so we have to be patient, but a good 45 minutes to start with for a player who has had just three days back in training," the Spurs boss told TottenhamHotspur.com.

On the assumption that Rose will not be risked, there is a strong chance Kyle Naughton will again cover at left-back. Considering the ability of Liverpool wide-men like Glen Johnson and Raheem Sterling to infiltrate from the right, do not be surprised if Rose's fitness is chanced.

Given the threat posed by Suarez and Philippe Coutinho in deep areas, it would be a sensible bet that Sandro returns to help shield his defence. He spoke to The Mirror's Darren Lewis earlier this week about his compatriot's Ronaldinho-like skill set and may well be the best candidate to obstruct Liverpool's creative stars.

The make-up of the midfield around Sandro will certainly give his manager something to think about. Mousa Dembele has been one of Spurs' better players of late, his quality on both sides of the ball making him indispensable in such a game.

Lewis Holtby has enjoyed a similarly fine run, but having played him versus Anzhi, Villas-Boas could be planning to use Paulinho in attacking midfield instead. Whoever plays, the hope will be that they continue their goalscoring.

The quality of options at the Portuguese's disposal extends to the wings, too.

Aaron Lennon is all but a given to start. The right winger has played a big role in Spurs' resurgence since the Man City loss, providing more width and penetration from that side than had been seen all season.

Despite decent work of late from Nacer Chadli, Erik Lamela and Gylfi Sigurdsson, Andros Townsend could be selected on left wing. Though still a work in progress there, he did enough versus Sunderland and Anzhi to suggest he could do a job in keeping Liverpool on the back foot down that flank.

Villas-Boas spoke of his delight at Roberto Soldado's hat-trick against the Russians, telling Spurs' official Twitter page:

Nonetheless, as he also told BBC Sport post-match, this does not necessarily mean the Spaniard will start versus Liverpool:

"

It's a bit premature. We always wanted to give this game to Roberto after two games in a row for Jermain Defoe. Jermain was deserving of his chance as well. Now it's about putting the best possible strategy of the game and seeing what we can do. 

"

Defoe's positive displays versus Fulham and Sunderland are likely to have earned him his chance versus Liverpool. Soldado has well and truly laid down a marker with his goals this week, though. Nothing short of a match-winning contribution will do for Defoe if he wants to retain his place beyond this weekend.

Anything less than a win for Tottenham should not be regarded as a disaster. That would be disrespectful to a Liverpool team in fine shape right now.

A win, though, would be a superb show of strength to both themselves and their rivals as 2013 comes to a close.