After suffering a disappointing defeat to Manchester United on the opening day, Tottenham will welcome Stoke City to White Hart Lane this Saturday. Stoke on the other hand also suffered a 1-0 defeat against Liverpool last Sunday. The Potters go into this match high on spirits after acquiring the services of Xherdan Shaqiri in a club record £12 million deal.
The Switzerland international is just one of the several big faces Stoke have signed this year but manager Mark Hughes will be without Bojan Krkic, club captain Ryan Shawcross and Peter Odemwingie while Marko Arnautovic and Marc Wilson remain doubtful and a suspension will prevent new signing Xherdan Shaqiri from making his Premier League debut.
Meanwhile Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino has a fully fit squad to choose from and is expected to start with club number 1 goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, who fractured his wrist in preseason. Danny Rose and Andros Townsend are also fit after recovering from the respective thigh and shoulder problems.
Though both the teams lost during the opening weekend, they played well and certainly deserved more from it. Tottenham were unfortunate to score an own goal, which also became the first goal of this season, while it was only a Philippe Coutinho’s stunning strike late on which denied stoke a draw. Both the teams will be desperate to get off the mark this time around.
Stoke will be looking to attack Spurs during the match rather than sitting deep, which might have been the case during the reign of former boss Tony Pulis. The Potters managed to do a double over Spurs last season, which hugely dented Spurs hopes for a top-four finish.
The one area where Spurs look short of options is up front, Pochettino has made it very clear that Emmanuel Adebayor does not feature in his first team plans this season, while Roberto Soldado has been sold to Villarreal. There is still time before the transfer window closes for Pochettino to bring in cover for his sides lead scorer last season Harry Kane.
Stoke Chairman Peter Coates has confirmed that Shaqiri will be the final new arrival this season at the Britannia Stadium. Stoke have been busy this transfer window, with 11 permanent signings confirmed.
Tottenham Hotspur vs Stoke City Possible Starting Lineups:
Predicted Tottenham starting XI: Lloris, Walker, Vertonghen, Alderweireld, Rose, Bentaleb, Mason, Lamela, Eriksen, Chadli and Kane.
Predicted Stoke starting XI: Butland, Johnson, Cameron, Muniesa, Pieters, Van Ginkel, Whelan, Walters, Adam, Shaqiri and Diouf.
Tottenham Hotspur vs Stoke City Match Facts:
- Stoke won both games against Tottenham last season – the first time they had done the double over Spurs in their history.
- There have been seven red cards in the last seven league meetings at the Britannia Stadium.
- Spurs have failed to keep a clean sheet in eight of their nine Premier League games at White Hart Lane in 2015.
- The only exception was their 2-0 victory against Hull City on 16 May.
- Harry Kane has scored 16 goals in 20 Premier League games in 2015 – more than any other player.
- The Potters are winless in five away league games (D2, L3), failing to score in the last two.
- Their most recent away win was by a 2-1 scoreline at Aston Villa on 21 February.
- They have not conceded a first-half goal in their last five games since conceding in the first minute against Sunderland on 25 April.
Stats courtesy BBC
Predicted scoreline: Tottenham versus Stoke City : 2-1
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