Tottenham Hotspur vs Southampton
English Premier League. Kick-off: 8pm, Wednesday 5th December.
DERBY defeats always hurt but what will have hit Mauricio Pochettino even harder was the fact his Spurs side were outclassed and outfought by Arsenal.
The energy Tottenham exerted in massive wins over Chelsea and Inter Milan had a big impact as the Gunners ran all over their North London rivals.
Having another game just a few days later is hardly ideal and I expect Pochettino to freshen things up as he bids to get a response from his team.
That should be enough to see them defeat a Southampton side rocked by the sacking of manager of Mark Hughes on Monday morning.
With Kelvin Davis in caretaker charge it's hard to see struggling Saints getting a win and that's why they're priced 8/1 at 888 Sport, with Tottenham the 4/11 favourites and the draw 15/4.
Spurs should get a few goals and I fancy them to win while keeping a clean sheet which is 13/10 with 888 Sport. They could go for the throat early on so the 7/5 on offer for over 1.5 goals in the first half also looks tempting.
Tottenham star Lucas Moura should come back in after starting on the bench against Arsenal and the Brazilian is 21/4 for first scorer and 9/5 for anytime scorer.
Jan Vertonghen's red card will also open the door for Toby Alderweireld to start and the Belgian defender could be a threat from set-pieces. That makes him a good option for anytime scorer at 21/2 with 888 Sport.
Southampton will have to do plenty of defending and it may pay to back a couple of their defenders to pick up yellow cards as they try to stem the tide.
Cedric Soares is 7/2 for a booking while the odds are a bit better for Japanese stopper Maya Yoshida at 5/1 with 888 Sport.
Recommended bets
- Spurs win with a clean sheet 13/10 (888 Sport)
- Over 1.5 goals in the first half 7/5 (888 Sport)
- Lucas Moura anytime scorer 9/5 (888 Sport)
I'm a sports journalist, football tipster and author from Dundee, who is now working in Glasgow. I've covered games at every level, from Junior football to internationals, and still love football even though it has clearly sold its soul. I've been in football tipping since 2018 with the MFT site.
