Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester City
English Premier League, KO: 16:30 Feb 5, 2023, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
MANCHESTER CITY can't afford many more slip-ups in the Premier League title race but face a potential banana skin on the road against a Tottenham side who have caused them plenty of problems.
It looked like Spurs would deliver a potentially fatal blow to City's defence of their crown when they raced into a 2-0 half-time lead at the Etihad just a few weeks ago. But Pep Guardiola's side roared back after the break to claim a thrilling 4-2 victory on a night when two of my recommended bets landed.
That kept the pressure on Arsenal at the top but the Gunners haven't shown any signs of bottling it yet so Manchester City will need to keep grinding out wins to stay on their trail.
City seem to have come out of the January transfer window looking a little weaker, having sent Joao Cancelo out on loan to Bayern Munich after the full-back fell out with Guardiola.
It has left them looking a little light at the back and Tottenham certainly have the firepower to hurt Man City's defence, with their front three as potent as any team in the Premier League.
That second-half collapse at the Etihad put more pressure on Antonio Conte after a derby defeat to Arsenal but the response since that setback has been good.
A battling 1-0 win at in-form Fulham put them back in the hunt for a top-four finish and Spurs followed it up by beating Preston 3-0 in the FA Cup as our man Mark saw his HT-FT bet come up at 10/3.
Facing Manchester City is a big step up in class but Tottenham have already shown their counter-attacking style can cause Guardiola and his players a big headache.
How the bookies view it
Manchester City have looked vulnerable at times this season but they are still odds-on favourites here at a best 10/13 with SBK. Tottenham are as big as 18/5 with SpreadEx while the draw pays 16/5 at BetUK.
Recent head to head
Spurs have been a bogey team for Manchester City in recent seasons, with Guardiola's side winning just three of the last eight meetings. Both matches ended in Tottenham victories last term, with a 1-0 triumph in London followed by a thrilling 3-2 win the Etihad, but City got their revenge with that 4-2 victory last month.
Players to watch
Heung-Min Son made a welcome return to form at Deepdale last weekend, scoring two superb goals to break Preston's resistance. His confidence will be up for this one and the Korean is 19/5 at William Hill for anytime scorer.
Conte's defence couldn't cope with Riyad Mahrez at the Etihad last month as the Algerian ran riot. He has fired blanks in his last two games but could hurt Tottenham again and is 3/1 with Unibet for anytime scorer.
Anything else catch the eye?
Sparks have flown in the last two meetings of these sides, with BTTS and over 4.5 goals landing in both matches. But most of the thrills have come at the Etihad, with the last five clashes in London producing only seven goals in total and BTTS failing to trap in all those games. That makes this one at tough one to call in terms of goals but the odds are better if you bet against both teams scoring at 7/5 with BetVictor.
Manchester City should have most of the ball and they have dominated the corner count in recent games with Spurs, winning 29-6 across the last three matches. That makes City -2 look great value in the corner handicap at 21/20 with Bet365.
Backing Cristian Romero for a card paid off for me when Spurs last faced the champions and the Argentine defender is always liable for a rash challenge. He's 5/2 with Unibet to pick up a card in this one which looks good value and evens with the same firm to commit over 1.5 fouls.
With Tottenham likely to play on the counter-attack, I like the 17/20 on offer at Unibet for Guardiola's side to have over 62.5 per cent of possession.
This English Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City will be played on Feb 5, 2023 and kick off at 16:30. Check below for our tipsters best Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester City prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
