Tottenham Hotspur will look to continue their late resurgence when they host reigning Premier League champions Manchester City in a crunch encounter on Wednesday.
While they appeared to be mired in dire straits, Spurs have bounced back emphatically with three wins on the trot against Brentford, Manchester United and Ipswich Town. Moreover, they have scored seven goals and conceded only one during the run.
Brimming with confidence, Spurs will look to make the most of their current form and inflict a similar misery against the struggling Manchester City side as they did in the reverse fixture this season. The Lilywhites have proven to be the Cityzens’ nemesis in recent years, and they will try to live up to the reputation this time.
Ange Postecoglou is aware that Spurs should try to capitalise on their impressive form and avoid complacency since they are still languishing in 12th place. They need to be at their best in the final stretch of the season to push for European places.
While Spurs beat Ipswich 4-1 in their latest game, Manchester City suffered yet another excruciating defeat against Liverpool on Sunday, which deepened their crisis.
Pep Guardiola’s side are proving to be vulnerable to any opposition this season – which speaks volumes about their unprecedented struggles – and they are likely to face a massive threat from Spurs as well.
Team News
One of the reasons that contributed to Spurs’ poor form on the pitch has been their injury crisis. The likes of Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven, Radu Dragusin, Richarlison and Richarlison have been sidelined, but the positive thing is Postecoglou can avail most of the players’ services in the coming weeks.
Timo Werner is said to have recovered from an injury, but his participation remains doubtful after having missed the game against Ipswich Town.
Predicted Tottenham line-up vs Manchester City
Goalkeeper
Guglielmo Vicario has kept two clean sheets in the last three games and will look to rise to the occasion against the Cityzens.
Defence
Kevin Danso has made a palpable impact in recent games to lead a depleted backline, and he will continue to feature alongside his centre-back partner Archie Gray. Destiny Udogie should continue as the left-back, while Djed Spence, despite scoring against Ipswich Town, might pave the way for Pedro Porro.
Midfield
Rodrigo Bentancur will continue to act as the pivot and will have a major role to play in winning balls and stopping the transitional attacks of Manchester City. Dejan Kulusevski should retain his place as an interior after scoring in the win against Ipswich. James Maddison will return to the playing 11 ahead of Lucas Bergvall against the Sky Blues.
Attack
Brennan Johnson put in a man-of-the-match performance against Ipswich with a stunning double, which must have handed him much-needed morale. He will look to terrorise the right wing with his blistering pace and directness, and so will Heung-min Son on the left.
Mathys Tel will continue to lead the attack and has a great chance to grab the spotlight against Manchester City.
