Premier League preview: Tottenham v Sunderland
Bolton brought Tottenham back down to Earth with a hefty thud at the weekend, following one of the most famous results in the club’s history three days earlier.
Harry Redknapp’s side upset the odds at White Hart Lane by hammering European champions Inter Milan in the Champions League group stages, but they failed to avoid the subsequent European hangover at the Reebok Stadium on Saturday.
Although Spurs have taken to Champions League football like the proverbial duck to water, they run the risk of missing out on next season’s premier European club competition unless they rediscover the form of last season.
At the same stage of the campaign last year, the north London outfit had four points more than they do now - they were then occupying fourth spot. Coincidentally, Spurs played Sunderland at the exact same stage of last season – also coming off the back of two consecutive Premier League defeats – and won 2-0.
A good omen for tonight’s fixture at the Lane? Redknapp will certainly be hoping so.
Victory for the hosts would ensure they climb back up to fifth place from seventh and get themselves back on track. However, Sunderland are level on points with the Champions League hopefuls and have only lost one of their last nine league matches.
Unfortunately for manager Steve Bruce that defeat happened to arrive in the form of an utterly humiliating 5-1 defeat against local north-east rivals Newcastle United. The despondent Black Cats’ boss described it as the worst day of his managerial career. Few could argue.
But credit must go to the Mackems for the way they bounced back at the weekend against Stoke City. Record signing and Ballon d’Or contender Asamoah Gyan was finally given his first start since arriving at the Stadium of Light in the summer, and the Ghanaian international duly obliged by netting both goals in the 2-0 win.
With former Tottenham striker Darren Bent a doubt for tonight’s match, the onus could again fall on Gyan for goals, but the emphasis will be placed on stifling the attacking threat of their opponents rather than pushing for all three points and leaving themselves potentially exposed.
After Gareth Bale’s masterclass against the Nerazzurri last Tuesday, right-back Nedum Onuoha will have his work cut out to contain the Welsh Wizard, although he will have help from Egyptian winger, Ahmed Elmohamady.
Bruce will be buoyed by the news that the hugely-gifted Rafael van der Vaart is unlikely to have recovered from a hamstring injury in time, while Aaron Lennon, Robbie Keane and William Gallas are also doubtful for tonight’s clash.
But one thing Spurs have in their favour – and crucially for any top-four contender – is a vast amount of strength in depth. With Jermain Defoe out injured, Roman Pavlyuchenko has stepped up to the fore with aplomb, but while Peter Crouch has excelled in Europe, he’s still looking for his first league goal of the campaign.
Tonight’s match could see history repeat itself. A 2-0 home win doesn’t sound like a far-fetched outcome despite the hosts’ injury concerns, and with the north London derby and a vital Champions League encounter looming, Redknapp knows how important rebuilding momentum is.
Prediction: Tottenham 2 Sunderland 1
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