After the midweek’s disappointment in Europe, Tottenham Hotspur will turn their attention back to the Premier League with a trip to Bournemouth up next.
Tottenham Hotspur will travel to the South Coast this weekend as they gear up to take on AFC Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium in matchweek 30 of the Premier League.
Tottenham were dumped out of the UEFA Champions League earlier this week, following their 2-1 defeat at the hands of Juventus at Wembley in the second leg of their round of 16 clash. And manager Mauricio Pochettino will be hoping to bounce back from the heartbreak with a winning display against the Cherries and further strengthen their hopes of achieving a top four finish in the league.
Bournemouth find themselves in the 12th place in the standings, six points above the threat of relegation, following their 1-1 draw against Leicester City this past weekend. Manager Eddie Howe will be keen on further distancing his side from the bottom three with at least a point against the North London outfit at home on Sunday.
Team News & Tactics
Bournemouth
Former Liverpool winger Jordon Ibe is set to miss out for Bournemouth with a hamstring problem while fellow winger Marc Pugh is also unavailable due to a calf injury. Defender Tyrone Mings is a long-term absentee for the Cherries with a back injury. Ryan Fraser has been carrying a back problem as well, which could curtail his involvement in the game.
Bournemouth will rely on former Chelsea and Stoke City goalkeeper Asmir Begovic to keep the Tottenham attackers from scoring on Sunday.
Club captain Simon Francis will start on the right-side of the back four while the ever-present Charlie Daniels will retain his spot at left-back. Steve Cook and Nathan Ake are expected to partner up in the heart of the defence. The entire backline will be in for a stern test against the Spurs’ attack and will need to be at the top of their game to come away with a positive result.
Adam Smith is once again expected to start on the right-flank with Ibe and Fraser both doubtful for the game. Going up against his former team, the Englishman will need to provide the width for the Cherries going forward. On the opposite flank, Junior Stanislas should get the nod once again with Pugh set to miss out.
The central midfield duo of Dan Gosling and Lewis Cook have been in solid form in recent matches for Bournemouth and Howe will be hoping that they are able to disrupt Tottenham’s rhythm in the midfield and hand their team an advantage.
Norwegian star Joshua King will operate as the auxiliary striker just in behind the main centre-forward Callum Wilson, with former Tottenham Hotspur striker Jermain Defoe likely to be relegated to the bench once again.
Probable Starting XI (4-4-1-1): Begovic; Francis, Cook, Ake, Daniels; Smith, Lewis Cook, Gosling, Stanislas; King; Wilson;
Tottenham Hotspur
Pochettino has confirmed that defensive mainstay Toby Alderweireld will once again miss out for Tottenham while Eric Dier’s availability is also under doubt, owing to an elbow injury he picked up against Juventus in the midweek. Other than that there are no concerns on the injuries and suspensions front for Spurs.
Hugo Lloris is expected to continue between the sticks and Pochettino will be hoping that his captain can help the team bounce back from the European disappointment with a strong display at the Vitality Stadium.
Serge Aurier, who missed the midweek game due to suspension, is eligible for selection for the league game and will replace Kieran Trippier at right-back, with Ben Davies occupying the full-back slot on the opposite side. Summer signing Davinson Sanchez will team up with Jan Vertonghen in the centre of the backline.
With a question mark over Eric Dier’s condition, Kenyan midfield enforcer Victor Wanyama is likely to be handed a start against the Cherries, alongside Mousa Dembele. The former will be the man in-charge of disrupting Bournemouth from building attacks, while the latter will be given the license to drive his team forward from the centre of the park.
January signing Lucas Moura has been waiting in the wings for quite some time now for his first Premier League start and Pochettino could hand him just that against the Cherries on the right wing. Son Heung-min has been Tottenham’s best player in recent weeks and deserves to hold on to his place on the left-flank, while Dele Alli could be left out with Christian Eriksen starting as the No.10 for Spurs.
Tottenham striker Harry Kane is the joint top-scorer in the Premier League this season with 24 strikes and will once again be the key man for his side on Sunday. Him leading the attack against the Cherries is a no-brainer.
Probable Starting XI (4-2-3-1): Lloris; Aurier, Sanchez, Vertonghen, Davies; Wanyama, Dembele; Lucas, Eriksen, Son; Kane;
Key Stats
- Bournemouth have lost four of their five Premier League meetings with Tottenham, with the exception being a 0-0 draw in this exact fixture last season.
- Spurs are unbeaten in their last 11 Premier League matches, winning the last three without conceding. They last won four in a row while keeping a clean sheet in April 2017.
- Bournemouth have scored at least 2 goals in their last 5 home matches in the Premier League.
- Tottenham have kept a clean sheet in their last 4 matches against Bournemouth in all competitions.
- Bournemouth haven’t tasted defeat in 9 of their last 10 Premier League fixtures. Tottenham, on the other hand, are also undefeated in their previous 11 games in the English top-flight.
Player to watch
Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur)
The England international has gone about his business with little fuss and has made goalscoring look extremely easy. Out of his 35 goals in the ongoing campaign, Kane has scored 13 away Premier League goals already and looks set to break the record of 16 sit by Kevin Phillips back in 1999/00.
Having gone two games in a row without finding the net, Kane will be itching to score again, especially after the midweek result. Bournemouth better watch out!
Prediction
Bournemouth 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur
Bournemouth have been in decent nick of late as well, but have shown that they are still suspect at the back. Spurs may be coming on the back of a loss that will have taken a hit on their confidence in a major way, but given the attacking quality that Pochettino’s disposal, we at the Hard Tackle predict this one going 2-1 Tottenham’s way.
