Tottenham welcome AZ Alkmaar to N17 this Thursday evening for Matchweek 3 of the Europa League.
The hosts have accumulated maximum points from their European games against Qarabag and Ferencvaros. whilst their Dutch visitors beat Elfsborg before losing 2-0 away at Athletic Club last time out.
Spurs academy graduate and AZ Alkmaar top goalscorer Troy Parrott returns to North London for the first time after permanently leaving last summer.
Heung-min Son and Djed Spence were not spotted in training but Ange Postecoglou revealed in his pre-match press conference that the South Korean was never going to feature. Spence is ineligible as he was not included in the 25-player squad.
However, French teenager Wilson Odobert has resumed training after a month out with a hamstring issue.
Tottenham vs AZ Alkmaar – Match preview and team news
Form
Tottenham: WWWLW
Ange Postecoglou and his players resumed their fine form at the weekend by coming from behind to beat West Ham 4-1.
Before the international break, Spurs had humiliated themselves by throwing away a two-goal halftime lead at Brighton to lose 3-2 on the South Coast.
Their reaction against West Ham was not immediate as Mohammed Kudus gave Julen Lopetegui’s side the lead before Dejan Kulusevski smartly restored parity just before the interval.
The Lilywhites turned on the style in the second period as the returning Heung-min Son orchestrated a second-half show that meant West Ham made the short trip back to East London empty-handed.
Apart from that blip at Brighton, Tottenham have rediscovered their form from the beginning of Postecoglou’s tenure and are now on a run of six wins from their last seven matches.
That spell includes their two wins in the Europa League as they comfortably beat Qarabag in North London, despite having 10 men for the majority of the contest, before earning a hard-fought three points at Ferencvaros.
AZ Alkmaar: WLLLL
Since edging out Swedish side Elfsborg 3-2 in their opening Europa League match, Alkmaar have lost each of their four games including a 2-0 defeat to Athletic Club last time out in the same competition.
Maarten Martens’ team’s dip in form has seen them drop to fifth place in the Eredivisie with eleven points separating them from league leaders PSV Eindhoven, who have a perfect record.
They began the campaign brightly, including a 9-1 trouncing over SC Heerenveen where Republic of Ireland international Troy Parrott netted four times.
But that early spark has fizzled out recently and everyone associated with the club will be hoping they can reignite that flame, starting with a positive result away at Tottenham.
Last Meeting: N/A
Tottenham have never previously played AZ Alkmaar.
Predicted Lineups
Tottenham: Vicario; Gray, Dragusin, Romero, Davies; Bentancur, Sarr, Bergvall; Moore, Richarlison, Werner.
AZ Alkmaar: Owusu-Oduro; Kasius, Penetra, Dekker, de Wit; Clasie, Buurmeester, Koopmeiners; Poku, Parrott, Van Bommel.
Who is the referee?
Lithuanian referee Manfredas Lukjančukas will be the match official. He will be assisted by Mangirdas Mirauskas and Vytenis Kazlauskas while Mandaugas Jackus will be the fourth official. The VAR is Sören Storks and he will be assisted by Fedayi San.
What channel is Tottenham vs AZ Alkmaar on?
Tottenham vs AZ Alkmaar will be available to watch on TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports Ultimate and Discovery+.
What time is kick off?
Kick-off at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will be at 20:00 BST on Thursday 24th October 2024.
Odds
Tottenham – 2/5
Draw – 4/1
AZ Alkmaar – 11/2
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