- Oct 17, 2006
- 10,708
- 25,296
SPURS 4-0 BURNLEY
Bale (2), Kane, Lucas
Bale (2), Kane, Lucas
Spurs: Lloris (c), Aurier (Doherty), Sanchez, Alderweireld, Reguilon, Hojbjerg, Ndombele, Lucas (Dele), Bale (Lamela), Son, Kane.
Subs: Hart, Dier, Davies, Winks, Sissoko, Vinicius.
Burnley
Official Site Match Centre
Ten changes from the midweek win over Wolfsberger AC with only Toby Alderweireld retaining his place in the starting line-up. It's three changes from the last Premier League game at West Ham with Aurier returning from injury in place of Tanganga, Alderweireld for Dier and Bale for Lamela.
REFEREE: -- ---- Kevin Friend ???????
TEAM FORM: - Spurs LLWLW ------- Burnley DLWDD -------- (All Competitions)
We will be aiming to return to winning ways in the Premier League when we welcome Burnley to our Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday afternoon. We have lost five of our last six in the league to drop down into ninth position in the table, while Burnley currently occupy 15th position, just six points clear of the relegation zone.
We ensured that we would be present in the last-16 stage of the Europa League courtesy of a 4-0 home victory over Wolfsberger on Thursday night, which secured an 8-1 aggregate success, setting up a tie with Dinamo Zagreb in the next round of the competition. We must address our disappointing league form, though, as we have lost five of our last six in England's top flight, including our last two away to Manchester City and West Ham United.
We beat WBA 2-0 in our last home league fixture, but we are now down in ninth position at the time of writing this, some nine points behind fourth-placed West Ham, albeit with a game in hand. A Champions League finish looks beyond us, but we are only four points behind sixth-placed Liverpool with a game in hand and will be determined to secure European football for the 2021-22 campaign, while the Europa League does give us another chance of securing a spot in next season's Champions League. We only have the eighth-best home record in the league this season, dropping points in seven of our last 12 matches, but we will be taking on a Burnley side with the fourth-worst away record in the league.
Burnley are certainly not safe from the threat of relegation as they sit just six points above 18th-placed Fulham, who have found some impressive form at a vital stage of the campaign. Newcastle United and Brighton & Hove Albion, who sit 17th and 16th respectively, will also both have Burnley in their sights, and it is likely that the Clarets will drop a position or two if they lose this weekend. The Clarets are actually on a four-game unbeaten run in the league but three of those matches have ended in draws, including a 0-0 with WBA last weekend. Sean Dyche’s side have a tough run of fixtures ahead as they face Leicester City, Arsenal and Everton in their three matches after this one, and it is not difficult to see how they could be pulled into trouble. Burnley have only lost two of their last four league matches with us, but they have not beaten us away from home in the league since January 1983, which is an indication of the size of their task as the Clarets prepare to head to our stadium.
We will only be missing one player for Sunday's clash, with Lo Celso still unavailable for selection despite the fact that the Argentine has made strong progress in his recovery from a thigh issue. Aurier is fit following a calf problem, and the Ivory Coast international is expected to return to our team at right-back, while there could be a starting role for Dele, who impressed against Wolfsberger. Bale's absence from the starting XI on Thursday suggests that the Wales international could be handed a spot in the side here, joining the likes of Kane and Son in attack, while Toby might get the nod alongside Dier in the heart of the defence.
As for Burnley, Chris Wood is in contention to start, having returned to training following a hamstring problem, while Jay Rodriguez should be available despite suffering a knock against West Brom last time out. Ashley Barnes and Johann Gudmundsson are definitely out, while Robbie Brady and Erik Pieters are also doubts for the trip to the English capital. Dyche is expected to keep faith with the majority of the side that started against West Brom, with Wood for Matej Vydra potentially the only change to the starting XI.
Banner courtesy of @chrissivad
Last edited by a moderator: