Friday, March 29, 2024

Prediction: Tottenham Hotspur vs Bournemouth

Veselin Trajkovic in Free Soccer Predictions 14 Apr 2023

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Verdict: Total goals over 2.5

Best odds: 8/11

Bookmaker: Betfair

Tottenham Hotspur are set to welcome Bournemouth to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in North London on Saturday afternoon for what will be a match within the 31st round of the Premier League season. Both these teams desperately need every point they can get between now and the end of the season, each for their own ends, and the contest for the three on offer here will surely be interesting.

Tottenham Hotspur

Spurs are thought to be in something of a bother since the sacking of Antonio Conte from the position of head coach at the end of last month. His assistant Christian Stellini has taken the reins for the remainder of the season.

Stellini was deemed involved in a scuffle with Brighton and Hove Albion boss Roberto De Zerbi in the previous round, and both coaches were shown the red card. Stellini is, however, expected to be in the dugout for this clash, as he awaits the results of the investigation into the incident. In all honesty, he appeared to be ignoring De Zerbi and his tantrums throughout, and the referee’s decision to send him off too raised quite a few eyebrows.

Leaving that aside, Spurs are currently looking at the top four spots from the outside, sitting fifth, with 53 points. That’s only three less than Newcastle and Manchester United in third and fourth, respectively, but Stellini’s men have played a game more than either of these rivals. Expecting them to make it into next season’s Champions League may not be too realistic at this point, even though nothing is decided, of course. But Spurs will do well to watch out for the teams behind them – Aston Villa in sixth on 47, Brighton in seventh with 46 and two games in hand, and Liverpool, who are eighth with the tally of 44 with one game in hand.

The North Londoners won just two of their last six matches in all competitions. The list includes a 1-0 loss away to Wolves, a 0-0 draw at home against AC Milan which saw them leave the Champions League after losing the first leg in Italy, a 3-1 home victory over Nottingham Forest, a 3-3 draw away to Southampton, a 1-1 draw away to Everton, and a lucky 2-1 win at home over Brighton.

Apart from the red cards given to the coaches, the Brighton clash raised a lot of dust as the officials failed to award the Seagulls a rather obvious penalty as Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg stamped on the foot of Kaoru Mitoma inside the box, a moment which forced the PGMOL to offer an official apology to Brighton afterwards. The body which exists to appoint referees and oversee their work has been apologizing quite a lot lately, a rather worrying sign for the integrity of the English game.

Team News

Six Spurs players are out of contention this weekend – defender Ben Davies (thigh), wingbacks Emerson Royal (knee) and Ryan Sessegnon (thigh), midfielders Yves Bissouma (ankle) and Rodrigo Bentacur (thigh), and winger Lucas Moura (red card suspension).

Hugo Lloris will be in goal, with Cristian Romero joining Eric Dier and Clement Lenglet in the back line. Hojbjerg and Oliver Skipp should pair up in the middle of the park, with Pedro Porro on the right and Ivan Perisic on the left. Striker Harry Kane will have Dejan Kulusevski and Son Heung-min in support.

Bournemouth

Bournemouth are desperately fighting for survival, and having been basically written off in the earlier stages of the season, they’ve managed to find some stability lately and get some notable results for their efforts. What’s more, their recent run of form is significantly better than that of Spurs – they’ve won three of their last six matches, and against some very formidable opposition too.

The run includes an extremely narrow and unlucky 3-2 defeat away to league leaders Arsenal, a shocking 1-0 victory at home over Liverpool right after the Merseysiders had thrashed Manchester United 7-0, a 3-0 loss away to Aston Villa, a 2-1 home win over Fulham, a 0-2 home defeat to Brighton, and a 0-1 win away to Leicester City.

These results have helped propel the Cherries well out of the relegation zone. At the moment, they are 15th with 30 points, though between them and Nottingham Forest in 18th, the gap is only three points wide, engulfing Leeds United (29) and Everton (27). The race for Premier League survival will likely be very intense down to the final round, and right now, even Leicester (19th, 25 points) and Southampton (bottom, 23) stand a chance of avoiding the drop. On the other hand, West Ham (14th, 30) and Wolves (13th, 31) are not safe either. With all these teams still to play eight matches (West Ham nine), the order will likely change several times.

Team News

Defender Ryan Fredericks (calf), midfielder Hamed Traore (ankle) and winger Junior Stanislas will miss the North London trip, while defender Marcos Senesi should be in the squad, having recovered from a thigh injury.

With captain Neto in goal, Chris Mepham will pair up with Jack Stephens in the heart of defence, with Adam Smith on one and Lloyd Kelly on the other side. Jefferson Lerma and Joe Rothwell will be protecting the back line from midfield, allowing for Phillip Billing to roam more freely and contribute upfront. Striker Dominic Solanke will be flanked by Dango Outtara and Marcus Tavernier.

Conclusion

As has been said, this should be an interesting match, particularly in view of Stellini announcing his team would employ a more attacking style between now and the end of the season. Let’s see if the Italian coach is true to his word and where it takes him if he does. Bournemouth are well-drilled as a counterattacking unit.

Spurs are, of course, the favourites to win, but the Cherries will surely have their say as well.

Verdict: Total goals over 2.5

Best odds: 8/11

Bookmaker: Betfair

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Veselin Trajkovic


Vesko is a football writer that likes to observe the game for what it is, focusing on teams, players and their roles, formations, tactics, rather than stats. He follows the English Premier League closely, Liverpool FC in particular. His articles have been published on seven different football blogs.

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