Tottenham narrowly avoided a major setback midweek and are now preparing for their next Premier League match today against Brentford at home.
After a disappointing loss to Arsenal in the North London derby, Spurs delivered one of their worst performances under manager Ange Postecoglou in the Carabao Cup third round against Coventry. It looked like they were heading for an early exit until late goals from Djed Spence and Brennan Johnson salvaged a win, though it was far from deserved.
While Postecoglou may have temporarily eased some pressure, Spurs will need to step up significantly as they face a strong, well-organized Brentford side.
Brentford had an easier time in their cup match, beating Leyton Orient 3-1, and they've had a solid start to the season. They currently sit ahead of Tottenham in the standings, having earned six points from four games. Last weekend, Brentford gave Manchester City a tough game before losing 2-1.
Tottenham suffered an injury blow midweek when Wilson Odobert picked up a significant hamstring injury, which will likely see him sidelined for some time. Timo Werner also went off injured against Coventry, but he wasn’t expected to feature this weekend.
Brennan Johnson is set to line up alongside Son Heung-min and Dominic Solanke in attack. Richarlison is still unavailable, but Yves Bissouma might return after missing the last two games.
Expected lineup: Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Bentancur, Maddison, Kulusevski; Johnson, Solanke, Son.
Spurs have struggled to make anything happen whilst in possession recently, putting in poor performances both in their 1-0 loss to Arsenal and their midweek cup match. Postecoglou will need to rethink his approach, as Brentford's style is well-suited to disrupting a team like Spurs.
Brentford will likely play deep, be physically strong, and wait to counter-attack, especially taking advantage of Tottenham’s weakness on set-pieces. Even if Spurs were in top form, this would be a tough challenge, and they may need another late surge to secure a win.
Predicted score: Tottenham 2-1 Brentford
What’s your prediction?
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