Tottenham vs Man City Preview and Betting Tips

And so it begins. Another Premier League season kicks off this weekend and the big match of the weekend is Tottenham vs Man City. Check out our in-depth season preview by clicking here. It is the dawn of a new era for Spurs under Nuno Espirito Santo. The fans will be hoping that Harry Kane stays at the club but today’s opponents have him high on their shopping list.

The defending EPL Champions have already signed Jack Grealish and if they can add Kane too, another title could well be on the cards. They’ll want to get off to a winning start in London and the bookies think they will. The visitors are 8/13 favs while Spurs are 9/2 and the draw is priced up at 3/1.

Tottenham

The Jose Mourinho experience was not a pleasant one for Spurs fans. Daniel Levy sacked him in April after less than 18 months in charge and Ryan Mason took control for the remainder of the season. Tottenham ended up in 7th place and they are targeting a return to the Top 4 this season. That won’t be easy for Nuno Espirito Santo given the upheaval in his squad. Alderweireld, Rose, Bale, Lamela and Vinicius have all either left or returned to their parent clubs. Spanish winger Bryan Gil has been signed from Sevilla for £22.5m and Gollini (GK) and centre back Cristian Romero have also joined.

What is really worrying for Spurs fans is the status of star striker Harry Kane. The want away forward refused to train last week and he only came back late this week. He is very unlikely to be fit to play 90 minutes on Sunday. In any case, even if he does play, will his mind be focused on the job? It is far from an ideal situation for Santo and Spurs and they need to get it resolved as soon as possible.

Back Four

Santo favoured playing three centre backs when managing Wolves. However, judging by pre-season, he is going to use a 4-2-3-1 formation. With Kane likely absent, Son will lead the line with Moura and Bergwijn out wide and possibly Dele Alli in the No.10 role. Hojbjerg is nailed on to start but it will be interesting to see who partners him in the engine room.

Romero reportedly is a doubt with a minor knee injury so Dier and Sanchez could start at centre back with Tanganga and Reguilon on the flanks. Spurs will hope to sit deep, frustrate City and then try to hit them on the counter with the pace of Son, Moura and Bergwijn. It is not going to be an easy task but City have often struggled against teams with pacy players up top and Spurs’ attackers definitely fit that description.

Man City

The Citizens may have won the title last season, but their campaign finished in bitter disappointment. Pep’s dream of landing the Champions League ended in a nightmare as a Kai Havertz goal secured a 1-0 final win for Chelsea. They finished 12 points clear of Man Utd in the Premier League and they have strengthened during the summer. Jack Grealish was signed from Villa for £100m and they’ll hoping he makes an instant impact. They want Harry Kane too, which is no surprise considering Gundogan was their top EPL scorer last season with just 13 goals.

The biggest departure during the off-season was Sergio Aguero. Eric Garcia has also left the club and Guardiola has stated that some other players want to leave too. Bernardo Silva is one of those and it will be interesting to see if Raheem Sterling is part of Pep’s plans. He was outstanding at the Euros but he fell out of favour at City last season and he is unlikely to be satisfied if he isn’t starting games regularly.

More Of The Same

From a tactical perspective, it will most likely be more of the same for City. It is hard to see Pep changing things up. City will be without a couple of important players in the opening weeks of the season. Kevin de Bruyne and Phil Foden are both out with injuries sustained at Euro 2020. Jack Grealish is a ready made replacement for the Belgian and Torres or Sterling could take Foden’s place in the front three alongside Jesus and Mahrez.

At the back, Ruben Dias will be hoping to maintain the form that earned him the Player Of The Year award last season. Stones or maybe Ake will start alongside him with Mendy and Cancelo most likely to start in the full back positions. Gundogan will provide a goalscoring threat from midfield and either Fernandinho or Rodri will play the anchor role. City started the season slowly last year so Pep will be keen not to make the same mistake again.

Tottenham vs Man City H2H

Tottenham vs Man City Betting Tip

City have had the upper hand in the last two meetings between these teams. They beat Spurs in the EFL Cup Final at Wembley in April and they won 3-0 in their last league meeting at the Etihad. However, Spurs have done well against City on their own patch. They are unbeaten in the last three at home vs City without conceding a goal. Can Spurs make it four home wins in a row vs City on Sunday?

It isn’t going to be easy, but they could well spring a surprise if they can keep it tight early on. Nuno Espirito Santo won’t mind if City have the majority of possession and his aim will be to get in level at half time. If Spurs can achieve that, they will then look to get forward more regularly during the second half and their pace can hurt The Citizens. It may take Jack Grealish a while to find his feet at City and this could be the best time to play them, especially with De Bruyne and Foden absent. They only won 3 of their first 8 matches last season so I am going to back Spurs in the draw no bet market at odds of 3/1.

Tottenham vs Man City Betting Tip: Tottenham win/draw no bet @ 16/5

Key Manager Quotes

Nuno Espirito Santo: ‘We start with City and it’s about us. We know we are going to face a tough opponent, a quality opponent but it’s about us. The things we want to do in the game, the way we want and how we want to compete. We are focused on ourselves and trying to be a good team.’

Pep Guardiola: ‘Every season I arrive six years ago I had the feeling it’s tougher, stronger. Better teams. Every season when you begin is a new challenge, we celebrate our title, now it’s in our cabinet, in our memories, and we start again.’

Dave Stevos