Are we on the road to greater things now?

Toby Alderweireld will be out until February with a hamstring injury. It has also been reported that we have only one once - out of six Premier League games - since he was wheeled off and out (Real Madrid). OK, so what? If any team is worth their salt they manage and have a strong enough squad. I agree. Our defeats have nothing to do with Alderweireld being out. We beat Real Madrid when he went off early. We won our next games against Dortmund & Apoel without him. In the league, we only lost two games, won two and drawn two since he has been out. Totally we have only lost 4 games in the league. That isn't a disaster or showing you that it was because he wasn't there. Yes, he is a great player, but we can manage without him.

We have the players to continue from our 5-1 victory over Stoke City, and even though Brighton isn't going to be a pushover it is a game we can win. Erik Lamela might be starting his first game since coming back. Sanchez has another two suspensions and Victor Wanyama is also still injured.

Brighton has no fresh injury problems; Steve Sidwell is their only absentee.

Winger Anthony Knockaert might be recalled after being left out in his last game.

MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head

• Tottenham have won four of their last five games against Brighton in all competitions.
• However, Brighton won 2-1 in the most recent league meeting in 1983 - the Seagulls were relegated from Division One that season.
• The sides last met in the League Cup in October 2014, with Spurs winning 2-0 at home courtesy of goals from Erik Lamela and Harry Kane.

Tottenham Hotspur

• Spurs have earned just eight points from seven games but ended a four-match winless run in the Premier League by beating Stoke 5-1 on Saturday.
• Mauricio Pochettino's side have dropped nine points in their first eight Premier League games at Wembley this season, as many as in their last 23 league games at White Hart Lane.
• Tottenham's total of four league defeats this season is already as many as in the entirety of the previous campaign.
• Harry Kane has scored 33 Premier League goals in 2017, only three behind Alan Shearer's record of 36 in a calendar year, set in 1995.
• Son Heung-Min has been involved in nine goals in his last 11 appearances for Tottenham, scoring six and setting up three.

Brighton & Hove Albion

• The Seagulls have failed to score a goal in the five away games they have played against sides currently above them in the league.
• They have attempted fewer shots than any other side in the Premier League this season (135).
• Brighton have failed to win on their three previous trips to Wembley - losing the FA Cup final to Manchester United 4-0 in a replay after a 2-2 draw, and losing the 1991 second tier play-off final 3-1 against Notts County.
• They have conceded seven goals from corners, a league high.
• Manager Chris Hughton made 398 appearances for Tottenham between 1979 and 1990, winning the FA Cup in 1981 and 1982, and the UEFA Cup in 1984.

Until we meet again, enjoy the game and cheer for your team, Don Scully.