Manchester City vs Tottenham prediction: ENGLAND: Premier League betting tips on match 2023-12-02 16:30.
[p]A challenging week for Manchester City saw them draw 1-1 with Liverpool, relinquish top spot in the Premier League (PL) standings and then recover from 2-0 down at half-time to beat RB Leipzig in the Champions League. They’re facing persistent pressure, but Pep Guardiola’s side are digging deep to get results as illustrated by their eight-game unbeaten sequence (W6, D2).[/p]
[p]Drawing with Liverpool ended a streak of 15 straight home league wins that began with a 4-2 victory over Tottenham Hotspur in January that ironically also saw them trailing 2-0 at the break! With PL H2Hs here often entertaining – the last four produced an average of 4.5 goals per game – the Cityzens (W2, D1, L1 in those four games) appear unlikely to panic if they trail again, a sentiment backed up by midfielder Phil Foden: “We’ve got a great record at the Etihad and it only takes one goal to change things.”[/p]
[p]Spurs topped the table earlier in the season before becoming just the fifth side to lose three straight PL games after scoring first in each of them, yet they could still draw level with Man City on points by winning here. A tall order has been made more difficult after a string of first-choice players went down injured, with Rodrigo Bentancur the latest as he prepares to undergo ankle surgery.[/p]
[p]Despite those defeats and absentees, manager Ange Postecoglou doesn’t seem likely to change his aggressive tactics, particularly as he said their play in a 2-1 home defeat to Aston Villa last Sunday was “as good as it’s been all season”. He might justify his approach given that prior to their defeat at Wolves (L 2-1), they hadn’t lost any of their last seven league away games (W5, D2).[/p]
[p]Players to watch: After becoming the quickest (35 games) and youngest player to score 40 Champions League goals, Erling Haaland will try to at least double his tally of one H2H strike, which came in this fixture last term. Meanwhile, Tottenham’s Giovani Lo Celso has two goal contributions (G1, A1) across his last two appearances for club and country. He has never lost a league match to City (W3, D1), scoring off the bench in one of his four PL H2Hs.[/p]
[p]Hot stat: Guardiola has lost more PL games against Spurs (six) than any other single side.[/p]