Middlesbrough were hotly tipped as the one new promotees expected to remain in the Premier League this season, but it turns out that their big name signings haven’t been able to save themselves from a rather lacklustre beginning to the campaign.
They started with a draw at home against Stoke, who have since gone on a dreadful run of form. They managed a win in their north east derby at Sunderland, but an elimination from the League Cup at the hands of Fulham was followed by a drab goalless draw at West Brom.
Middlesbrough have since lost to Crystal Palace and Everton to make it five points from their opening five games, leaving them in 13th position in the Premier League but as one of the most out of form sides in the table.
Tottenham Hotspur have started their season in much the same vein as they did last term. They have performed solidly but haven’t drawn too much attention in terms of the title race. They drew at Everton in the opening game of the season but managed a narrow win at home to Crystal Palace to pick up their first three points.
A draw with Liverpool was an acceptable result, and the 4-0 thrashing of Stoke gave the White Hart Lane faithful a lot of hope as Harry Kane got on the score-sheet for the first time this season. Those White Hart Lane faithful migrated to Wembley for their Champions League group opener against Monaco but came away dejected after being beaten 2-1.
A 1-0 win over Sunderland saw them immediately bounce back, and the 5-0 thrashing of Gillingham midweek gave their attack a much needed boost in confidence. The reason they needed a boost in confidence is simple – Harry Kane is injured. Spurs’ star striker has been ruled out until November, and they will now need to rely on new signing Vincent Janssen up front.
Fortunately for Spurs their opponents are really struggling at the moment. Their last home game resulted in a 2-1 defeat to Crystal Palace and they are yet to win at the Riverside this season. I think the overall quality of Tottenham Hotspur should be enough to get them the win, even without Kane, and odds of 19/20 for an away victory look good value to me. I’m going for a 2-0 correct score prediction at 17/2 as well.
Prediction Middlesbrough FC vs Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham face a tricky fixture this weekend when they travel to Middlesbrough. It’s a match Spurs should win, but securing three points on the road in the Premier League is rarely a straightforward task.
Further complicating issues for Mauricio Pochettino, are several prominent injury questions ahead of the match. Star striker Harry Kane will certainly miss the affair, and several other regular starters also face fitness questions. It could be a last-minute decision whether or not Eric Dier, Moussa Dembele or Danny Rose are involved.
Even with the injury doubts, it’s pretty easy to predict the majority of Saturday’s starting XI. Pairing a little bit of common sense with clues from the Tottenham squad against Gillingham on Wednesday provide us a lot of data to go on.
Even so, Pochettino has been a little more adventurous with his lineups as of late. No one expected Jan Vertonghen to start at left back last week, so I suppose anything is possible. Read on to discover the club’s likely starting lineup as they travel to Boro on the weekend.
The last 5 matches of Middlesbrough FC
17.09.2016 Everton FC - Middlesbrough FC 3:1 L
10.09.2016 Middlesbrough FC - Crystal Palace 1:2 L
28.08.2016 West Bromwich Albion - Middlesbrough FC 0:0 D
21.08.2016 Sunderland - Middlesbrough FC 1:2 W
13.08.2016 Middlesbrough FC - Stoke City 1:1 D
The last 5 matches of Tottenham Hotspur
18.09.2016 Tottenham Hotspur - Sunderland 1:0 W
10.09.2016 Stoke City - Tottenham Hotspur 0:4 W
27.08.2016 Tottenham Hotspur - Liverpool FC 1:1 D
20.08.2016 Tottenham Hotspur - Crystal Palace 1:0 W
13.08.2016 Everton FC - Tottenham Hotspur 1:1 D
Predicted Lineup Middlesbrough FC vs Tottenham Hotspur
The predicted result is a 2-0 romp for Tottenham Hotspur.
Middlesbrough starting lineup (4-2-3-1 formation): Valdes; Barragan, Ayala, Gibson, Friend; de Roon, Forshaw; Nsue, Ramirez, Downing; Negredo
Tottenham Hotspur starting lineup (4-2-3-1 formation): Lloris; Walker, Dier, Alderweireld, Vertonghen; Wanyama, Dembélé; Sissoko, Alli, Son; Kane
Tag :
English Premier League
