Tottenham v Fulham: Preview, Team News & Predictions
Tottenham Hotspur will seek a brief taste of the Premier League summit when they play host to cross-city rivals Fulham on Monday, October 23rd.
The international break saw Ange Postecoglou rewarded with a second straight manager of the month award; with six wins in eight contests and at least two goals scored every single time they took the field less their 1-0 win over Luton Town. Without a doubt, there’s a freshness about the Spurs of late.
The only time they’ve been beaten was by Marco Silva’s Fulham, who sent them crashing out of the EFL Cup in the second-round courtesy of a 5-3 win via penalties. Nevertheless, with players back unscathed and the team thriving, Spurs will seek to earn their seventh win in eight PL games.
Meanwhile, Fulham have largely been a mixed bag this season. A win against Everton on opening day was followed by a 3-0 drubbing at the hands of Brentford. After snatching a point at the Emirates and progressing to the third round of the EFL Cup, they were brushed aside by Manchester City 5-1.
While the run of fixtures continues to remain topsy-turvy, Silva will urge his men to search for consistency if they are to better last season’s 10th place finish.
Team News
Tottenham Hotspur
Yves Bissouma’s red card against Luton changed the complexion of the match, but thankfully for the North Londoners, not the result as they eased to a 1-0 win.
He’s therefore suspended for the fixture. However, Son Heung-Min and Cristian Romero are available to feature after picking up slight knocks over the break.
Brennan Johnson’s activity in training will be monitored, and he should make the bench. Rodrigo Bentancur and Bryan Gil have been involved in some training, while Manor Solomon and Ryan Sessegnon are out for the mid-term.
Fulham
Issa Diop’s foot injury is a tough blow for the visitors, forcing Silva to play Calvin Bassey and Tim Ream in the middle of the back line. Tosin Adarabayo’s unavailability further depletes Fulham’s defensive contingent.
Kenny Tete and Adama Traore will have to watch on from the sidelines due to injury.
Predicted XI
Tottenham Hotspur (4-2-3-1): Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Sarr, Hojbjerg; Kulusevski, Maddison, Richarlison; Son
Fulham (4-3-3): Leno; Castagne, Bassey, Ream, Robinson; Pereira, Palhinha, Iwobi; Decordova-Reid, Jimenez, Willian
Match Prediction
Well-rested and ready to incite pandemonium at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium, Spurs should take Fuham to the cleaners. The latter have surrendered a tick over 15 xGC (expected goals conceded), clearly indicating that they’re not one of the stiffer defenses in the league.
Expect the Tottenham fullbacks to exploit key areas of the final third and make the difference alongside the deadly duo of Son Heung-Min and James Maddison.
A goal-fest is likely in the cards.
Predicted score: Totteham Hotspur 4-1 Fulham
-Roy Akarshak
Twitter: @RoyAkarshak
Photo: Дмитрий Голубович. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.