Date: Wednesday, January 29 Venue: White Hart Lane Kick-Off: 19:45 Can Tottenham avenge the 6-0 drubbing they suffered at the hands of Manchester City the last time these two sides met when they play host to Manuel Pellegrini's side tonight?
Team News
Tottenham will be without midfielder Andros Townsend and winger Erik Lamela when Manchester City visit in the Premier League on Wednesday night. Townsend has a hamstring problem and Lamela is out with a thigh injury. The good news is Jan Vertonghen, Younes Kaboul and Sandro have all returned to training, though remain doubts. Manchester City will welcome Alvaro Negredo back into the side after the striker overcame his shoulder injury, while David Silva is also available following a hamstring problem. Samir Nasri, James Milner and Javi Garcia are all still sidelined. (BBC)
Key Stats
Tottenham lost the reverse of this fixture 6-0 when the two sides met at the Etihad last November. Manchester City have scored 17 goals in their last five league games against Tottenham. Spurs have won seven and lost just one of their last 10 home games against City. City are unbeaten in 19 matches, scoring 64 goals in that period.
Likely Line-Ups
Tottenham Lloris, Walker, Dawson, Chirches, Vertonghen, Paulinho, Dembele, Chadli, Eriksen, Lennon, Adebayor Man City Hart, Zabaleta, Kompany, Demichelis, Clichy, Fernandinho, Toure, Silva, Navas, Aguero, Negredo
Match Preview
Tottenham fans will have tried to repress the memories of last November's Premier League clash with Manchester City at Etihad Stadium. Spurs were given a thorough thrashing that day and were on the receiving end of a walloping 6-0 defeat, as City ran riot in front of their home crowd. A lot has changed at White Hart Lane since then. Andre Villas-Boas is gone, after suffering a similarly-morale-sapping loss to Liverpool, and Tim Sherwood has taken the reigns. If the league had started after Sherwood took charge, City would be top with 18 points and the Lilywhites would be second with 16, which goes to show how far the Londoners have come since. Spurs have won all three of their league games this month, a run which took in victory at City's derby rivals United on New Year's Day, and are undefeated in their last six. Formers Citizens striker Emmanuel Adebayor has also come good, with five goals from seven games this season, and will be looking to prove a point against his former side. City can go top with a win here following Arsenal's slip-up against Southampton on Tuesday, and though Tottenham are much-improved, I'm going for an away win. Prediction: 1-2
Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.
