Match Preview Tottenham Hotspur welcome Manchester City to the capital in a winner-takes-all Premier League clash on Wednesday evening. Ange Postecoglou’s men have already beaten City twice and Manchester United three times this term. If Spurs can get the win here they will be the first team to beat both Manchester giants three times in a season.
The North Londoners arrive here on the heels of a decisive 4-1 rout of Ipswich Town, their third-straight victory in the Premier League. Brennan Johnson shone with two goals, Son Heung-min supplying both his assists, with Djed Spence and Dejan Kulusevski also on target. Despite a brief scare from Omari Hutchinson’s goal they clamped control to consolidate their mid-table position.
Despite being below par at 12th, Tottenham have largely put any relegation fears behind them after the return of some key players from injury. They now look for their fourth consecutive win in the league, which they last accomplished back in October2023. They have also shown defensive resilience, keeping clean sheets in three of their last four home games and scoring in 18 straight matches at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
As for Manchester City, they come to North London nursing the wounds of a 2-0 loss to Liverpool. Without Erling Haaland, Pep Guardiola’s team labored for attacking fluency, losing for the third time in four games. The lack of a clinical touch was a worrying sign for the champions going into this make-or-break clash.
The currently fourth-place City is in danger of dropping to sixth if Chelsea and Aston Villa win in midweek. It must be a concern for the visitors given that their recent away form has not been great, winning just two of their last nine league games, both against sides struggling above the relegation zone in Leicester City and Ipswich Town. Also, Tottenham has already beaten them twice this season — 4-0 in the Premier League and 2-1 in the EFL Cup — which makes this trip that much more daunting for Guardiola’s men.
Team News
Tottenham still has Ben Davies (load management), Radu Dragusin (ACL), Dominic Solanke (knee), Richarlison (calf), Cristian Romero (thigh), and Micky van de Ven (thigh) out. Timo Werner (hamstring) could make the bench, while James Maddison and Pedro Porro should return to the XI after being rested at Ipswich.
For City, Erling Haaland is a huge doubt with a knee injury, and the quick turnaround may see him miss out again. If he plays and scores he would become only the second player, alongside Harry Kane, to score 10 home and 10 away goals in three successive Premier League seasons. Rodri (ACL), Oscar Bobb (ankle), Manuel Akanji (abductor) and John Stones (thigh) are also out, while Kevin De Bruyne could be among the subs.
Predicted Lineups
Tottenham Hotspur: Vicario; Porro, Gray, Danso, Spence; Maddison, Bentancur, Sarr; Kulusevski, Johnson, Son.
Manchester City: Ederson; Lewis, Khusanov, Dias, Gvardiol; Gonzalez, Kovacic; Savinho, Silva, Doku; Marmoush.
prediction: Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Manchester City
Tottenham’s recent resurgence and home form also make them formidable opponents, and City’s porous defense may not cope with their attacking prowess. But even without Haaland, Guardiola’s team had the quality to react. Expect a hard-fought contest, but City’s experience and depth might just get them over the line in a narrow away win.
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