Preview: Tottenham Hotspur vs. Bournemouth

Sports Mole previews Sunday’s Premier League clash between Tottenham Hotspur and Bournemouth, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

After their three-game winning run was brought to an abrupt halt, Tottenham Hotspur will host in-form Bournemouth on New Year’s Eve.

While Spurs were well beaten by Brighton last time out, the Cherries posted their sixth win from seven on Boxing Day and continued their remarkable ascent of the Premier League table.

Match preview
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Having found themselves two goals down within half an hour at Brighton’s Amex Stadium, Tottenham’s Thursday night trip to the South Coast seemed set for failure even before the half-time whistle.

The North London club failed to have a shot on target in the first half, and their hosts went on to strike twice more, as Pervis Estupinan fired home from long range and Joao Pedro beat Guglielmo Vicario from the spot for a second time.

In the final 10 minutes, Alejo Veliz and Ben Davies pulled two goals back, but Spurs spurned several other late chances and an improbable comeback ultimately proved beyond them.

As a result, Ange Postecoglou’s men sit just behind reigning champions Manchester City, who occupy fourth place in the Premier League standings, with capital-city rivals West Ham United having closed to within three points of the former table-toppers.

Tottenham now return home for the final fixture of an eventful year, playing their first New Year’s Eve game since 2011. They have failed to win their last league outing in each of the past five calendar years, but Postecoglou will aim to end that run against Bournemouth.

Spurs have scored 32 times in 13 previous Premier League meetings with the Cherries, averaging 2.5 goals per game; however, a very different Bournemouth side will arrive at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on this occasion.

Like their hosts, Bournemouth have been short of success in year-ending fixtures for some time now, having lost four of their last five. Yet, recent results suggest they can travel to London confident of improving that record.

The South Coast side won 3-2 at Tottenham last season, after losing each of their first five Premier League away games there, and some unstoppable form over the past two months means that another victory on Sunday could not be described as an ‘upset’.

Since their first league win of the season in late October, no side have won more top-flight games (seven) or picked up more points (22) than Andoni Iraola’s inspired side, who had previously languished inside the drop zone.

Following successive victories over Crystal Palace, Manchester United, Nottingham Forest and Fulham – the latter coming courtesy of goals from Justin Kluivert, Luis Sinisterra and leading scorer Dominic Solanke on Boxing Day – the Cherries have moved into mid-table, leaving relegation fears far behind.

Indeed, they have won six of their last seven Premier League games – drawing the other against high-flying Aston Villa – while scoring at least twice each time; now Iraola could set a new club record by guiding his team to five consecutive top-flight wins for the very first time.

Tottenham Hotspur Premier League form:

Bournemouth Premier League form:

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Tottenham’s injury list stubbornly refuses to shorten, and Ange Postecoglou will be without a host of senior players again on Sunday afternoon.

Manor Solomon (knee), Ivan Perisic (knee), Ryan Sessegnon (hamstring), Rodrigo Bentancur (ankle), James Maddison (ankle), Micky van de Ven (thigh) and Cristian Romero (hamstring) are all out of action, while Yves Bissouma continues to serve a suspension alongside Dejan Kulusevski.

Therefore, options to shake up a Spurs side that lost in Brighton are limited, with Giovani Lo Celso and Bryan Gil the most credible candidates for promotion from the bench. Oliver Skipp is also a contender if passed fit.

Set to join captain Heung-min Son in the final third, Richarlison has been involved in seven goals in his last six Premier League home games, scoring four and assisting three – that hot streak follows a 14-game drought at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Meanwhile, Bournemouth hope midfield regular Lewis Cook can recover from a groin problem to play some part this weekend; however, Tyler Adams (thigh), Lloyd Kelly (thigh) and Ryan Fredericks (calf) remain sidelined, alongside Hamed Traore, who recently contracted malaria.

Full-backs Milos Kerkez and Max Aarons missed the win over Fulham – though the latter was named among the substitutes despite being short of fitness – but both could be back at Andoni Iraola’s disposal. A return for Kerkez would see Dango Ouattara drop out of the starting XI, having filled in at left-back on Tuesday.

Leading the line up front, Dominic Solanke has racked up eight goals from his last seven league appearances and has a total of 12 to his name this term. Only Josh King (16 in 2016-17) and Callum Wilson (14 in 2018-19) have scored more for Bournemouth in a single Premier League season.

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:
Vicario; Porro, Emerson, Davies, Udogie; Skipp, Sarr; Johnson, Lo Celso, Son; Richarlison

Bournemouth possible starting lineup:
Neto; Smith, Zabarnyi, Senesi, Kerkez; Christie, Scott; Semenyo, Kluivert, Tavernier; Solanke

We say: Tottenham Hotspur 2-2 Bournemouth
Both sides prefer a progressive style of play, and Bournemouth will not be intimidated by their surroundings, having recently quietened Old Trafford and stunned Selhurst Park. It could be a toe-to-toe contest, then, and as Spurs have scored in each of their last 18 home matches, several goals should be expected.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting over 2.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Over 2.5:data

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