Spurs handed serious blow ahead of showdown with Manchester City
By Tom Vinall
This Saturday, Tottenham Hotspur return to Premier League action this weekend, as they face Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium, in the 17:30 GMT kick off, live on Sky Sports.
It has been a difficult time for City, whom have lost four games in a row under Pep Guardiola for the first time ever, although they come into this game after the new that Guardiola has signed a new contract at the club, which will give some much needed clarity, and may help them on the pitch moving forward.
Something else that will help them on the pitch – are the returns of Kevin De Bruyne, John Stones, Jack Grealish, and Manuel Akanji to first team training ahead of the game this weekend. All four players missed the international break, and could come into this game fresh and ready to go.
Spurs handed big blow by return of four key City players
It is always a tough game against City regardless of who is on the pitch, but it is still the last thing you want to hear. Sometimes, without the guile of De Bruyne, Erling Haaland can cut a frustrated and isolated figure, with other City players not as direct and able to find Haaland like De Bruyne is.
The idea of De Bruyne playing through balls to Haaland, in behind Spurs’ ultra high line is a pretty petrifying thought. The striker is fresh off four goals scored for Norway over the international break, as he gets back to his devastating early season form.
At the back, City have looked seriously vulnerable defensively in recent games, consistently conceding more than one goal a game, but also consistently giving up several big chances in each game too. The returns of Stones and/or Akanji could be really helpful for them in that regard.
It really is a case of when it rains, it pours for Spurs at the moment. Not only are the aforementioned City players in with a chance of featuring this weekend, there are going to be a number of absentees for Ange’s side. Wilson Odobert is out, and will be in the medium-long term, Micky van de Ven is out, and could be out until the beginning of December.
Rodrigo Bentancur will be out, and will be for the next seven domestic games. There is still no clarity on whether or not Cristian Romero will make the game, having picked up an injury on international duty with Argentina. That all said, when they really had their backs against the walls, Spurs managed to pick up a 3-3 draw in this fixture last season, so let’s see.
feed