Tottenham Hotspur have work to do if they are to advance past AZ Alkmaar to the Europa League quarter-finals on Thursday night.
Ange Postecoglou’s side fell to a 1-0 defeat during last week’s first leg at the AFAS Stadion.
Back at their capital headquarters for this Thursday’s second leg, Europa League outright favourites Spurs will be feeling quietly confident about their chances of overturning a one-goal defeat.
Tottenham will come into this clash off the back of an action-packed 2-2 draw with Bournemouth in the Premier League on Sunday.
As for AZ, they are in pretty good shape at the moment, winning six of their last nine matches across all competitions.
What's more, Maarten Martens' men will be the fresher of the two teams coming into this week’s second leg after being afforded the weekend off by the Dutch FA.
How the bookies view it: Spurs to march on
Tottenham – who find themselves in must-win territory on Thursday night – are heavy 4/9 favourites on Boylesports.
A draw would be enough to seal AZ’s passage to the last-eight and that outcome can be backed at 10/3 on Boylesports, while an away win is trading at 9/2 with the same firm.
Head to head: Honours even this season
Following last week’s meeting in the Netherlands, Tottenham and AZ have now crossed paths twice in this season’s Europa League, with each team earning a win so far. Tottenham claimed a 1-0 victory at this venue during the league phase and a repeat of that scoreline on Thursday night has been priced up at 7/1 on Boylesports.
Players to watch: Johnson to give Spurs a jolt?
Brennan Johnson has enjoyed a quietly impressive season in front of goal for Tottenham, scoring 14 times and providing three assists across his 37 appearances in all competitions to date. With that in mind, the Spurs forward looks worth siding with here in the to score or assist market at 6/5 on Unibet.
Peer Koopmeiners has committed two fouls or more in each of his previous two appearances against Tottenham this season, making a repeat here worthy of interest at 21/20 with BetVictor.
Predicted line-ups
Rodrigo Bentancur will serve a one-match suspension on Thursday night after collecting his third continental card of the campaign last week.
AZ manager Martens could be without as many as six players for this week's return match in the English capital.
Tottenham Hotspur: Vicario; Pedro Porro, Van de Ven, Romero, Udogie; Bergvall, Gray, Maddison; Johnson, Solanke, Son
AZ Alkmaar: Owusu-Oduro; Maikuma, Goes, Penetra, Wolfe; Clasie, Buurmeester, Koopmeiners; Poku, Parrott, Sadiq
Anything else catch the eye?
The attacking intensity that Tottenham attack with often results in them racking up high corner kick returns.
With that in mind, coupled with Spurs' need for the win on Thursday night, I’m happy to back the hosts to hit four or more first-half corners here at 21/20 on Bet 365.
Postecoglou’s attack-minded outfit are averaging a shade under four first-half flag-kicks per home game in the Premier League this season.
This UEFA Europa League match between Tottenham Hotspur and AZ Alkmaar will be played on and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Tottenham Hotspur vs AZ Alkmaar prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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