THE Angeball is in danger of bursting at Tottenham Hotspur and it would be a massive surprise if injury-hit Spurs avoided slumping to a fourth straight Premier League defeat away to champions Manchester City.
Fans force-fed a diet of defensive football under Jose Mourinho, Nuno Espirito Santo and Antonio Conte were lapping up Ange Postecoglou's adventurous style of football when the Aussie got off to a flier in London.
But Postecoglou's first Premier League loss at home to Chelsea a month ago proved disastrous in so many respects, with James Maddison and Micky Van de Ven crocked as Cristian Romero and Destiny Udogie picked up red cards.
I cashed in by backing Wolves to beat Tottenham's ravaged team in their next game and even Udogie's return from suspension wasn't enough to stop them crashing to a 2-1 loss at home to Aston Villa last weekend.
Rodrigo Bentancur picked up another serious injury in that match and it's the last thing Postecoglou needs ahead of a trip to the European champions. But he can take a little heart from the fact Manchester City have been looking a little vulnerable of late.
Last weekend's 1-1 draw with Liverpool made it successive Premier League stalemates for Pep Guardiola's men and that has allowed Arsenal to knock them off the summit.
It looked like it would be three games without a win for Manchester City in midweek when they fell 2-0 behind at home to RB Leipzig in the Champions League. But a storming comeback, with Julian Alvarez's winner bringing up a second bet for me, has got them back on track ahead of Tottenham's visit.
How the bookies view it?
Manchester City are heavy favourites and their best price is just 8/25 with BetMGM. Tottenham Hotspur are as big as 9/1 with SkyBet and even the draw is pretty hefty at 21/4 with the same firm.
Recent head to head
Spurs fans may have grumbled about the cautious approach of their last few managers but that actually worked a treat against Manchester City. In their last nine meetings with Guardiola's all-conquering side, Tottenham have lost just three times. But one of those defeats came on their last trip to the Etihad, with City coming from 2-0 down to win 4-2 in a thriller.
Players to watch
If Tottenham persist with their high defensive line it will make them vulnerable to the pace of Belgian winger Jeremy Doku. He's 5/2 at William Hill for a fifth goal of the season but an assist might be more likely and that pays 12/5 at Bet365.
Heung-Min Son has a good record in this fixture and has netted seven times against Manchester City. The South Korean is 10/3 with Bet365 for anytime scorer while the same firm have Son at a whopping 9/1 for an assist.
Anything else catch the eye?
This match should be a treat for armchair fans with both Guardiola and Postecoglou always committed to attack. That's why BTTS is just 8/11 with Midnite while over 2.5 goals is even shorter at a best 7/18 with VBet. Backing over 3.5 goals pays just evens at Paddy Power but over 1.5 first-half goals is a bit better at 11/10 with the same firm.
Spurs will be stretched at the back once more as Romero serves the final game of his three-match ban. Postecoglou fielded four full-backs in the loss to Aston Villa, despite having a recognised centre-back in Eric Dier, who had to settle for a place on the bench. Erling Haaland will be licking his lips at the prospect of taking on such an unsettled defence and the goal machine is 13/5 at Coral to score two or more goals.
Pedro Porro's raids down the right for Spurs have been a feature of their attacking play but the Spaniard remains vulnerable defensively. He will have his hands full in this game, up against either the searing pace of Doku or the trickery of Jack Grealish. That makes him a good candidate for a card at 14/5 with Unibet.
This English Premier League match between Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur will be played on Dec 3, 2023 and kick off at 16:30. Check below for our tipsters best Manchester City vs Tottenham Hotspur prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
