OLD adversaries Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola will come face-to-face on Sunday afternoon when Tothenham Hotspur entertain Manchester City.
Collectively, both managers have five Premier League medals between them, however, inconsistency has been both respective sides downfall this season – City's title defence is all but over, while Spurs hopes of playing Champions League football next season are fading by the week.
Guardiola's star-studded side are currently enjoying a five-match unbeaten run in the Premier League, however, the unpredictably that has plagued the Sky Blues season was evident at the Etihad during Wednesday night's EFL Cup semi-final second-leg loss to Manchester United.
Indeed, the Citizens will go on to contest the first trophy of the season at Wembley later this month, however, City once again failed to make the most of their dominance during the most recent Manchester derby – a campaign blighted by such issues for the Blue Moon.
Jose Mourinho has slayed a number of European giants throughout his illustrious career, however, the self proclaimed “Special One” has only been able to lead Tottenham to victory against the lesser sides in the league thus far.
Following a promising start to life in north London, Spurs have slumped under the Portuguese's stewardship, with their only two wins of 2020 to date coming at home against both Middlesbrough and Norwich respectively.
The Betting Odds
Despite winning three of the last six meetings in the capital, Tottneham are a towering 5/1 (BetVictor) to triumph on Sunday afternoon.
Man City have won seven of their last eight road trips and that is reflected in the 4/7 (SportNation) on offer for a City success on Sunday, while a share of the spoils is priced at 18/5 with UniBet
The Betting Angles
I successfully tipped Man United to make the net bulge against Man City in midweek and although there is little value in backing Spurs to do the same at 4/9 with William Hill, I do like the look of the 5/6 (Betfred) on offer for Tottenham to score, two or more Tottenham corners and 10+ Tottenham booking points.
Granted, Spurs have struggled for goals in Harry Kane's absence and Mourinho will set up to frustrate the the Blue Moon with his defensive blueprint, however, 18 of Man City's last 23 matches across all competitions have seen both teams get on the scoresheet.
However, the Londoners have also been leaking goals this season, registering just three clean sheets in 24 top-flight tussles and that does not bode well ahead of a showdown with the deadliest attack in the division.
The free-scoring Citizens have hit the back of the net in each of their last 21 away matches and Man City will be smarting after failing to score in midweek.
A case could be made for a number of City players in the goalscorer markets, however, I'm going to opt for an alternative angle by backing Kevin De Bruyne to have at least one shot on target at 5/6 (PaddyPower)
The brilliant Belgian has scored seven goals in 23 league appearances – one shy of his best-ever goal return in the Premier League – and the City playmaker may be more inclined to have a pop from distance should Spurs” park the bus”
Given Mourinho's tendency to set up to spoil games, coupled with City's erratic season, I'm going to steer clear of the outright betting markets on Sunday, however, better value could lie in the card markets given that card-happy Mike Dean will oversee a meeting involving two of the top-eight ill-disciplined sides in the division.
Only Arsenal have racked up more cards than Spurs this season and City's expansive style can often leave them exposed, which in turn can lead to them committing cynical fouls – something that is feasible on Sunday given the amount of flair and pace that Spurs possess.
With that in mind, as well as the fact that Mike Dean has the whistle, the 21/20 (Bet 365) that is available for each team to collect over one card in the capital takes appeal.
This English Premier League match between Tottenham and Man City will be played on Feb 2, 2020 and kick off at 16:30. Check below for our tipsters best Tottenham vs Man City prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
