Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester City
Football: England, Premier League
Wednesday, 16th December 2009 - Kickoff 20:00

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Tottenham (5th) Home : 5-0-3 21:8

Tottenham Hotspur started the season off well, with a lot of talk about the top four before a 0-3 thrashing at the Emirates Stadium against Arsenal caused the doom and gloom merchants to surface.

However, that was soon followed by a devestating 9-1 annihilation of Wigan Athletic that had Spurs fans cock-a-hoop, before a series of poor results underlined by the 0-1 home loss to Wolves last Saturday, which had the naysayers out again.

What I'm trying to underline is that this season Spurs do have the quality to succeed in ANY game, but that it's debatable whether the side has the consistancy to really challenge for a top four spot at the end of the season.

Tottenham Hotspur Team News
Tottenham will give Jermaine Jenas a late fitness test as the midfielder continues to recover from food poisoning.

Luca Modric, who came off the bench on Saturday after four months out with a broken leg, is not quite ready to start.

Injured : Cudicini (wrist), King (knee), Woodgate (groin)

Manchester City (6th) 2-5-1 13:11

So what do you think of "Abu Dhabi" City this season - success or failure? Top 4 material, Europa League makeweight, or midtable mercenaries?

I've seen Man City beat Arsenal twice (once in the Carling Cup) and I'm still not sure what to make of this expensive bunch or mercenaries.

City have lost only once all season, a last minute 3-4 defeat at Old Trafford in the derby against United, and yet after five consecutive away draws Man City are sitting in 7th place and losing a grip on the "holy grail" of Champions League football - essential if they are to attract top talent to the club.

Manchester City Team News :
Manchester City will be without Craig Bellamy, who is suspended following his red card at the weekend.

Shaun Wright-Phillips is definitely out after aggravating an ankle injury.

Doubtful : De Jong (virus)
Injured : Bridge & Johnson (knee), Wright-Phillips (ankle)

The Betting Verdict

This game is obviously the match of the night for neutrals, with the improvement in both of these two sides (and Aston Villa) making for a genuine "top seven" at this stage of the season.

Tottenham have won this fixture by a 2-1 scoreline in each of the last five occasions, and also won four of the five reverse fixtures in the same period.

While it's true that Man City are vastly revamped this season, I'll also say that Spurs are better too - and I'd have Tottenham as at least 50% likely to win.

I can't help but punt for another 2-1 scoreline.

The Statistics :

The Pick :

Tottenham 2-1 Manchester City

PERCENTAGE ESTIMATE :

Tottenham 53% - DRaw 26% - Man City 21%

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

Take TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR to win at a very good price.