Tottenham Hotspur v Stoke City: Spurs to relish return home and blow European demons away

Tottenham Hotspur v Stoke City
Sunday 26 February, 13:30
Live on Sky Sports 1

Tottenham

It's hard to know where to start with Tottenham. Mauricio Pochettino's men have looked imperious at times this season, arguably the best side in the Premier League on their day.

The most notable occasion when everything clicked was in that 2-0 dismantling of Antonio Conte's Chelsea in early January which came amidst a run of seven wins in a row. But there have been others too - their 2-0 win against Manchester City and when they put four past Southampton and West Brom over the new year period.

Those victories have helped Spurs to third in the table and into the quarter-finals of the FA Cup.

At other times, however, they have looked well under cooked. No more so than in Europe where they have had a torrid time this season.

Watching Spurs on Thursday was eerily reminiscent of watching England. Not only for the white kits and the dead atmosphere at Wembley, but for seeing a team full of superior individuals beaten by a combination of their own mistakes - think bad tackles and spurned one-on-ones - and an uninspiring but well organised opposition.

The one silver lining for Spurs is that they were by far the better side for large parts against Gent in midweek despite being down to 10 men and would probably have won comfortably if it wasn't for Dele Alli's reckless early red card.

They responded well against Fulham last week after a disappointing result in Belgium and I fully expect them to do the same as they return to their proper home - White Hart Lane - where they are undefeated in the league all season.

Stoke

Stoke have been making headlines for the wrong reasons in the past few weeks. Saido Berahino's transfer from West Brom and the very public row with former manager Tony Pulis that followed has detracted from performances on the pitch.

The Potters are ninth in the table and that position is well deserved even if they can be wildly inconsistent. Four defeats in a row at the start of the season were followed by two draws then three straight victories before another five-game winless run followed in December.

With Berahino looking like he may be given his full debut on Sunday, Stoke will have a new goalscoring threat that could see them become a much more difficult proposition.

In saying that, Mark Hughes' men have only picked up two points from a possible 21 against sides in the top six and could struggle against a Spurs side looking to avenge European heartbreak.

Match odds

Spurs come into this one as hot favourites at 1.45 and that looks justified given they have the second best home record in the league behind leaders Chelsea.

Stoke have only won three on the road - against Sunderland, Hull and Watford - and were thrashed 4-0 in the return fixture.

The Potters can be backed at 8.60 to pull off an upset while the draw trades at around 5.10.

Match Odds + Over/Under 2.5 Goals

Spurs should start quickly in this game as they look to get Thursday's result right out of their system.

With Harry Kane back on form, Berahino in the reckoning, Alli looking to make up for his red and Peter Crouch returning to his old stomping ground, goals could well be on the cards.

A Tottenham win plus Over 2.5 Goals has paid off in seven of their last nine wins and, with a comfortable victory on the cards, can be backed at around 2.00 on the Sportsbook.

Tottenham -1

Stoke have conceded 21 goals in their seven games against top six opposition this season and could well be vulnerable at White Hart Lane on Sunday where Pochettino's men clearly love playing.

Spurs have won their previous two fixtures against Stoke 4-0 and have won five of their last nine home games by a margin of two goals or more.

You can back them at odds of 2.20 to do the same again on Sunday.

Ref watch

Jonathan Moss will take charge of Sunday's game. The West Riding FA official has overseen 25 games this season dishing out 100 yellow cards and three reds.

It will be his first time refereeing Stoke this season but he has overseen two Spurs games. Moss has been a mixed blessing for Pochettino's men, however, being in charge of both their 2-1 loss to Liverpool in the EFL Cup as well as their 5-0 demolition of Swansea in the league.

Recommended bets

Back Tottenham -1 @ 2.20a