Swansea head to White Hart Lane on Sunday on the back of qualifying for the semi-finals of the League Cup, but both sides suffered chastening losses in the league last weekend.
Spurs’ travails in the last ten minutes of matches hit a new low last weekend, as what would have been an excellent win at Everton was transformed into a disheartening loss by two goals in the closing minutes. Spurs are still in decent form though, having won three of their last four matches including their last two at home.
Swansea’s form also hit the buffers last weekend, with Norwich racing into a three goal lead before holding on to win an excellent match 4-3 at the Liberty. Swansea have enjoyed away day success of late though, with a 2-1 win at Newcastle followed by the 2-0 victory over Arsenal at the Emirates two weeks ago.
It will be interesting to see if Swansea are a little jaded on Sunday, having played their first team in the 1-0 victory over Middlesbrough in the Capital One Cup quarter final on Wednesday night. In a season where Spurs are looking to compete on several fronts, they have enjoyed a rare week off, and might be the fresher side at the weekend as result.
The home team have also been boosted this week by key players returning to the squad. Scott Parker and Michael Dawson could be in line to feature at the weekend, and Assou-Ekotto is also on the brink of a comeback, having trained with the first team during the week. Even more important is the potential return of Gareth Bale, who missed the loss at Everton having come off injured in the preceding match at Fulham. Bale is unlikely to start the game on Sunday, but any appearance from the Welshman will be a welcome sight for the home team.
Swansea will still be without Michel Vorm for the trip to London, and Pablo Hernandez currently looks unlikely to feature as well. How the side copes with another 90 minutes on the back of Wednesday’s win will be the main challenge for Laudrup, who must decide whether to rotate some of his key players.
Last season Spurs won a close game 3-1 courtesy of a brace from Emmanuel Adebayor. Gylfi Sigurdsson got the goal for the visitors, but will likely be on the home team’s bench this time around. Whether Spurs go with Adebayor and Defoe will be the key tactical question for Villas-Boas, and the answer may depend on whether Bale is fit to play. If the Welshman starts, the inform Dempsey will probably start ahead of one of the strikers, if Bale’s is out, then Spurs will likely use the same team as in the Everton match.
However they line up each side will set up to play attractive football, and with both in decent form, the match at White Hart Lane could be one of the most entertaining of the weekend.
image: © StartAgain
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