Manchester City v Tottenham Hotspur: Not an Ideal Fixture After NLD Disappointment

by Matthew Harris · Published 18th January 2023 · Updated 18th January 2023

A pretty pitiful performance on Sunday has left a cloud around the new White Hart Lane. The inability to actually compete is being compounded by some very basic errors at the back and it’s not been a productive period since Spurs returned to action following the World Cup.

With that in mind, a trip to Manchester City on Thursday night isn’t exactly ideal. Our opponents may have slipped up in the title race, but are Tottenham really in a position to take advantage?

Team News

At least the physio’s room is starting to empty out after injuries to some of our key players. Richarlison and Dejan Kulusevski both returned to the matchday squad on Sunday, although they could do little to influence the final result.

Prior to that game, Rodrigo Bentancur had seemed the most likely man to return. The Uruguayan remained on the sidelines, but he is now expected to be back for the first time since scoring the winner against Leeds United ahead of the World Cup.

That leaves Lucas Moura as the only definite injury absence, as he remains in that physio’s room with his troublesome tendon.

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA – JULY 13: Richarlison of Tottenham Hotspur in action during the preseason friendly match between Tottenham Hotspur and Team K League at Seoul World Cup Stadium on July 13, 2022 in Seoul, South Korea. (Photo by Han Myung-Gu/Getty Images)

Match Odds

Manchester City would have been disappointed to have seen Arsenal’s lead go back to eight points at the weekend. Pep Guardiola’s men went down 2-1 to great rivals Manchester City, but they might not have wished for a better chance of getting back to winning ways.

The match result market reflects some of our poor recent performances and City will start as red hot favourites for the win at 7/11 with 10Bet. The draw is next at best industry odds of 23/5 with Unibet while a victory for Tottenham completes this section at 15/2 with Ladbrokes and Coral.

City aren’t in the best of form coming into this game. They lost at home to Brentford in their final fixture before the World Cup, so that loss to Manchester United last time out made it two defeats and just 10 points from their last six matches.

Spurs have seven points over that same, six game period. The form guide is fairly even, but it would need a huge lift in our performances if we are to get anything from this fixture.

Side Markets

Manchester City players dominate the top of the first goalscorer betting. Erling Haaland leads the way at best odds of 13/5 with Unibet and he’s followed by Julian Alvarez at 11/2, plus Riyad Mahrez and Phil Foden at 7/1 – all with Unibet again.

Julian Alvarez

Spurs’ first representative is Harry Kane at a top price of 9/1 with Unibet, while options among his team mates include Son Heung-Min at 16/1 with Quinnbet, Dejan Kulusevski at 30/1 with Unibet, Ivan Perisic at 33/1 with Unibet and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg at 66/1 with Unibet.

Away from the players, Both Teams to Score is on offer for Thursday night’s game at best odds of 10/11 with Unibet. If you prefer to take the ‘no’ bet on BTTS, this is available at 42/41 with VBet.

Next is Total Combined Goals and we’ll start with the figures for going Over the 2.5 line which is currently on offer at a best of just 11/20 with Betway. If you want to push one step further to Over 3.5, this would come in at a top price of 11/8 with Unibet.

Those that want to go the other way can consider a stake Under the 2.5 goal line which can be backed at best odds of 19/12 with VBet.

We’ll finish as ever with some Correct Score suggestions. If you’re looking for what would seem to be an unlikely repeat of last season’s 3-2 away win, this is listed at 66/1 with Quinnbet. A 2-0 win for Manchester City is available at 7/1 with Unibet, and we’ll round off with the 2-2 draw at 18/1 with Quinnbet.

Last Season

At least we can come to a game which we can look back on with great fondness. As always, Spurs were given little chance of a result when they travelled to the Etihad in February this year but the team came back to north London with a dramatic 3-2 win.

As with this Thursday’s upcoming fixture, City started the game as hot favourites, but were put on the back foot when Dejan Kulusevski side footed into an empty net on four minutes. Ilkay Gundogan levelled before the break but Harry Kane’s first of the evening put us back in front on the hour.

That’s the way it stayed until a dramatic period of injury time. Riyad Mahrez equalised from the spot but Harry’s header in the fifth minute of stoppage time won the day. A happy memory from this section and it’s one that’s well worth seeing again on YouTube.

Verdict

At the risk of repeating ourselves we do try to stay upbeat, but maybe this is the time to start complaining about the state of this Tottenham team. The owners seem to be able to attract high profile managers, but the investment just isn’t there in terms of getting the top players.

Then there are the questions of current tactics and team selection. It was famously said that ‘the game is about glory, not waiting for the other lot to die of boredom.’ Well, we’re all dying of boredom right now.

If this season ends without a trophy and with Spurs outside of the Champions League places, the worry then is that Harry Kane will leave and others will follow. When we remember some of the poor buys that followed in the wake of the Gareth Bale sale, can we really trust the club to bring the right people in?

You can’t always be positive and it’s all a bit depressing at the moment. Can Thursday night provide any sort of lift in the mood?

There can always be surprise results and Manchester City aren’t exactly in scintillating form. Last season’s 3-2 win at the Etihad wasn’t expected, so let’s not completely rule it out.

For now, we’ll just finish with two selections for those who are thinking about entering the markets. Both Teams Not to Score and Under 2.5 Goals are the picks for two sides who weren’t productive in front of the net at the weekend. We can just hope for a better performance from Spurs which shouldn’t be that hard.