Right ok so thoughts on the Spurs/Stoke game.
Second game for Spurs manager Tim Sherwood at home, he will demand a positive result after a slip up earlier this week vs WBA. Main issue for Spurs has been scoring, defensively they have been very sound but with other teams ahead of them scoring goals continuously, Spurs need to make sure if they do intact go down early they can rely on their offence to get them back. However that has not been the case, they sport the worst offence in the top 10 having scored only 19 goals in 18 games, 8 goals at the Lane in 9 games. A once very potent offensive threat throughout the years, Spurs now have to reorganize after AVB had been ousted for not producing the positive results after spending over 100mil pounds.
Tim Sherwood is a well respected manager throughout the organization and has been a fan favourite during his playing years. He understands the importance of playing well at the Lane in order to keep their top 6 ambitions in order.
Stoke on the other hand will be some what baffled after their big loss to Newcastle. Having been in control for the most part of the game and being up 1, 2 red cards followed along with 5 goals. Manager Mark Hughes was left furious and has been investigated by the FA for improper conduct. Now losing the match is one thing but now they will be without the services of Glenn Whelan and Marc Wilson….PLUS first choice keeper Asmier Begovic as well as central defender Robert Huth are injured for this match. Big blow for the team with the worst road record in the BPL with only 1 win 2 draw 6 loss scored 8 conceded 20. Stoke have always relied on home performances to keep them afloat in the BPL and it goes to show yet again this year. One must note though historically, Stoke play Tottenham very very tough infact the last 5 visits to the Lane have produced 1 win, 3 draws, 1 loss….However here's the difference, Tony Pulis was their manager and now it's Mark Hughes. Stoke have seen a mixed bag of results lately, last game loss was first loss in 4 matches.
Spurs will be without Kyle Walker who is suspended, Jan Vertonghen, Sandro, Kane, Townsend and Kaboul are out with injuries…but this is why Spurs spent the big bucks for depth. They have capable players with quality that if managed properly are extremely effective. This is where Sherwood has to win the Tottenham board over, he isn't necessarily the best manager around but give him some time to develop his system where the players feel comfortable and Spurs will be a very tough team to beat.
For today this game is very important for both sides, Stoke will want to bounce back after getting trashed, Spurs will want to forget about WBA slip up and score goals against the worst BPL road team.
I think the middle of the park will be a huge issue for Stoke as well as the back, Crouch will cause problems but the lack of creativity will not help.
This might be the best coming out party for Spurs so I am confident in a minimum 2 goal win.