The Sports Bank

The only all-big six clash of the weekend will see Chelsea head to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in what should be a high-scoring affair. Expect a lot of goals and open play between two London rivals, one of whom is very much in the Premier League title race.

Chelsea currently sit second in the table, seven points behind the bellwether Liverpool FC.

London Derby FYIs

Tottenham Hotspur vs Chelsea FC

Kickoff: Sun. December 8, 4:30 pm, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, UK

Team News for Both Sides: go here

Starting XI Predictions: Tottenham Hotspur Chelsea

Win Probability: Draw 24% Tottenham Hotspur 30% Chelsea 46%

Tottenham, on the other hand, are mid-table and fading fast. Their season is headed in the opposite/wrong direction. In terms of the first team that Blues boss Enzo Maresca may select here, we think he’ll make just two changes from the lineup that blew the doors off Southampton FC in midweek.

Renato Veiga and Jadon Sancho came in for Marc Cucurella and Noni Madueke respectively, so we think they’ll be involved from the off this time around.

Chelsea FC Starting XI Prediction at Tottenham Hotspur

Robert Sanchez; Malo Gusto, Benoit Badiashile, Levi Colwill, Renato Veiga; Moises Caicedo, Enzo Fernandez; Jadon Sancho, Cole Palmer, Pedro Neto; Nicolas Jackson

Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”

He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.

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If Tottenham Hotspur are to make a move, and by that I mean a real move, then the time is now. And it all starts with a trip to AFC Bournemouth on Thursday. Spurs thrashed Manchester City (a club that is uncharacteristically in a slide right now) last month, meaning a door has been opened.

Manchester United is down, while we’re not really sold on Arsenal or Chelsea yet either.

Tottenham Hotspur at AFC Bournemouth FYIs

Kickoff: Thurs. Dec 5, 2024, 8:15 pm UK, Dean Court, Vitality Stadium, Boscombe, UK

Tottenham Preview Content: Team News Starting XI Prediction

Result Probability: Tottenham 39% Draw `25% Bournemouth 36%

PL Position, Form Guide: Tottenham 7th, 20 pts WLWLD Bournemouth 13th, 18 pts DWLLW

This is really the right year for Spurs to make a statement of intent, and move up the ladder. Ange Postecoglu said they would win a trophy this season, so it’s time to back up the big talk.

Tottenham Hotspur Starting XI Prediction at AFC Bournemouth

Fraser Forster; Pedro Porro, Radu Dragusin, Ben Davies, Destiny Udogie; Dejan Kulusevski, Yves Bissouma, James Maddison; Brennan Johnson, Dominic Solanke, Heung-Min Son

Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”

He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.

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Lots and lots of absentees for Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday night, when they visit AFC Bournemouth for the final midweek Premier League fixture. We start with Rodrigo Bentancur who will serve the third of his seven-game suspension for domestic competition.

Elsewhere, moving on from Bentancur, Wilson Odobert (hamstring), Guglielmo Vicario (major ankle injury), Micky van de Ven (hamstring problem) and Richarlison (also a hamstring problem) are all ruled out here.

Tottenham Hotspur at AFC Bournemouth FYIs

Kickoff: Thurs. Dec 5, 2024, 8:15 pm UK, Dean Court, Vitality Stadium, Boscombe, UK

Tottenham Preview Content: Team News Starting XI Prediction

Result Probability: Tottenham 39% Draw `25% AFC Bournemouth 36%

PL Position, Form Guide: Tottenham 7th, 20 pts WLWLD AFC Bournemouth 13th, 18 pts DWLLW

Spurs Team News

Mikey Moore (unspecified illness) is a strong doubt, at the least, and will likely not recover in time.

However, the news is better for Cristian Romero, whose toe injury should not keep him out for an extended period of time, we’re told. It still could be serious enough to keep him out of this next match.

You also have two players who could be cleared if they pass late fitness tests in Dominic Solanke (unspecified illness) and Archie Gray (a slight knock on the thigh).

Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”

He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.

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Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will host a London derby on Sunday when Fulham FC comes to town. It should be a tightly contested affair and hard fought battle. So with that in mind, let’s preview this match, from the Spurs point of view.

Tottenham Hotspur vs Fulham FC FYIs

Kickoff: Sun. Dec 1, 2024, 1:30 pm UK, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, UK

Result Probability: Tottenham 56% Draw `21% Fulham FC 23%

PL Position, Form Guide: Tottenham 8th, 19 pts WLWLW Fulham FC 12th, 18 pts LDWWL

Spurs Team News

Rodrigo Bentancur will serve the second of his seven-game suspension for domestic competition in this one. Elsewhere Wilson Odobert (hamstring), Guglielmo Vicario (major ankle injury), Micky van de Ven (hamstring problem) and Richarlison (also a hamstring problem) are all ruled out here.

Mikey Moore (unspecified illness) is a strong doubt, but may recover in time. However, the newest injury concern is Cristian Romero, whose toe injury should not keep him out for an extended period of time, we’re told.

However, it is serious enough to keep him out of this match.

Starting XI Prediction vs Fulham

Fraser Forster; Pedro Porro, Radu Dragusin, Ben Davies, Destiny Udogie; Pape Matar Sarr, Yves Bissouma, James Maddison; Dejan Kulusevski, Dominic Solanke, Heung-Min Son

Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”

He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.

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For Tottenham Hotspur, it would be pretty astute and practical for Rodrigo Bentancur to feature against AS Roma on Thursday. He should feature here in all Spurs’ UEFA competition matches, in the near future, given that he’s serving a seven match ban domestically. Why, well, we covered that here, as it’s the classic “the policing agency is much more angry than the actual victim” kind of situation.

So who should/will join him in the starting lineup?

AS Roma at Tottenham Hotspur FYIs

Kick: Thurs. Nov. 28, 8pm, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, UK

Competition: UEFA Europa League Matchday 5 of 8

Tottenham Preview Material: Team News Starting XI Prediction

UEL Standing, Form: Tottenham 7th, 9 pts, WWWL AS Roma 20th, 5 pts, DLWD

AS Roma versus Tottenham Hotspur sounds like the kind of match that Jose Mourinho should be at, right?

After all, these are two of his many many former clubs.

Tottenham Hotspur Starting XI Prediction

Fraser Forster; Djed Spence, Radu Dragusin, Ben Davies, Archie Gray; Lucas Bergvall, Rodrigo Bentancur, Pape Matar Sarr; Brennan Johnson, Dominic Solanke, Timo Werner

Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”

He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.

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Are Tottenham Hotspur catching Manchester City at the exact right time? It’s true that the Cityzens are on a bad slide right now. Or is this the proverbial “nothing more dangerous than a wounded animal” cliche that we often hear about in sports. What we know for sure is that both of these sides are having a season that has not gone according to their best laid plans.

So both sides are desperate for a win right now.

Man City vs Tottenham Hotspur FYIs

Kick: Sat. Nov 23, 5:30pm, Etihad Stadium, Manchester, UK

Team News: Man City Part 1 Man City Part 2 Tottenham

Starting XI Predictions: Man City Tottenham

Full Injury List: Man City Tottenham

Google Result Probability: Man City 64% Draw 19% Tottenham 17%

PL Form: Man City WWWLL Tottenham LWLWL

PL Standing: Man City 2nd, 23 pts Tottenham 10th 16 pts

Tottenham Hotspur Starting XI Prediction at Manchester City

Guglielo Vicario; Pedro Porro, Radu Dragusin, Ben Davies, Destiny Udogie; Dejan Kulusevski, Yves Bissouma, Pape Matar Sarr; Brennan Johnson, Dominic Solanke, Heung-Min Son

Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”

He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.

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Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur has been hit with a seven-match ban and a £100,000 fine (approximately €120,000) by the English Football Association for comments he made about his own teammate Son Heung-min this past summer. THFC are appealing the length of the ban.

Betancur was speaking to a media outlet from his home country of Uruguay when a reporter asked him for a Son shirt. Bentancur responded with “or from any cousin of Sonny; all Koreans look very much alike.”

Man City vs Tottenham Hotspur FYIs

Kick: Sat. Nov 23, 5:30pm, Etihad Stadium, Manchester, UK

Team News: Man City Part 1 Man City Part 2 Tottenham

Starting XI Predictions: Man City Tottenham

Full Injury List: Man City Tottenham

Google Result Probability: Man City 64% Draw 19% Tottenham 17%

PL Form: Man City WWWLL Tottenham LWLWL

PL Standing: Man City 2nd, 23 pts Tottenham 10th 16 pts

Tottenham Team News

Despite the two teammates being good friends and Son actually not taking any offense from it, the FA declared it a racist remark and threw the book at Betancur.

So the Uruguyan will miss out against Man City on Saturday, and then we’ll just have to see from there. Meanwhile Cristian Romero is a doubt due to a foot injury. Spurs also have a trio of players who are beyond doubtful, and by that I mean they’re definitively ruled out, due to hamstring injuries, in Micky van de Ven, Richarlison and Wilson Odobert.

The last two names have been out awhile, or at least that’s how it feels.

While Spurs will be on the road, and they’re looking up at City in the standings, at least they have a squad with far fewer fitness concerns than their opponents.

Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”

He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.

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Manchester City hosts Tottenham Hotspur in an all-big six clash Saturday matinee. This is probably the headliner fixture of the Premier League weekend, essentially, even though both sides are not in a place where they want to be right now. Spurs are just a smack dab in the middle of the table side right now while City are on a bad skid, and facing an injury crisis.

So with that all in mind, let’s preview this puppy.

Man City vs Tottenham Hotspur FYIs

Kick: Sat. Nov 23, 5:30pm, Etihad Stadium, Manchester, UK

Team News: Man City Part 1 Man City Part 2 Tottenham

Starting XI Predictions: Man City Tottenham

Full Injury List: Man City Tottenham

Google Result Probability: Man City 64% Draw 19% Spurs 17%

PL Form: Man City WWWLL Tottenham LWLWL

PL Standing: Man City 2nd, 23 pts Tottenham 10th 16 pts

City boss Pep Guardiola might very short-handed, when it comes to selection, right now, but here’s the best of what’s left for him to select from.

Manchester City Starting XI Prediction vs Tottenham Hotspur

Ederson; Kyle Walker, Manuel Akanji, John Stones, Josko Gvardiol; Mateo Kovacic, Ilkay Gundogan, Phil Foden, Savinho, Bernardo Silva; Erling Haaland

Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”

He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.

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Tottenham Hotspur have certainly been up and down lately, with one more match until the November international break. It’s a visit from Ipswich Town, so it will almost certainly be a victory. If it’s a draw or loss, well, then that would be a disaster.

And it would be a disaster that they would have to ponder during the November internationals.

Tottenham Hotspur vs Ipswich Town FYIs

Tottenham Preview Material: Full Injury Report Starting XI Prediction Team News

Kick-off: 5.30pm (BST), Sunday November 10, 2pm, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Result Probability: Tottenham 77% Ipswich Town 10% Draw 13%

Premier League Standings: Tottenham 7th, 16 pts, Ipswich Town 18th, 5 pts

Spurs boss Ange Postecoglu will field a very strong team to try and make sure that that does not happen. And here below is what we think that looks like.

Tottenham Hotspur Starting XI Prediction vs Ipswich Town

Guglielmo Vicario; Pedro Porro, Cristian Romero, Radu Dragusin, Destiny Udogie; Dejan Kulusevski, Rodrigo Bentancur, Pape Matar Sarr; Brennan Johnson, Dominic Solanke, Heung-Min Son

Tottenham Hotspur 4, Ipswich Town 0

North-Londoners will wash the stench of failure from Thursday night.

Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”

He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG.org. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.

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Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has a fully fit squad, so he can easily manage minutes now, amidst all the heavy fixture congestion. Will Jhon Duran remain only a super-sub? Even despite the fact that he is the Villans’ most effective and efficient scorer? I guess so! Sunday brings a trip to Tottenham Hotspur, which is one of the most standout fixtures of the Premier League weekend.

Tottenham Hotspur vs Aston Villa FYIs

Starting XI Predictions: Tottenham Aston Villa

Team News: Tottenham Aston Villa

Kick-off: 5.30pm (BST), Sunday November 3, 2pm, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Result Probability: Tottenham 50% Aston Villa 27% Draw 23%

Premier League Standings: Tottenham 10th, 13 pts, Aston Villa 5th, 18 pts

So with all of that preview preamble done now…let’s take a look at who Emery might select for his first team here.

Aston Villa FC Starting XI Prediction

Emi Martinez; Matty Cash, Konsa, Pau Torres, Lucas Digne; Amadou Onana, Youri Tielemans; John McGinn, Morgan Rogers, Jacob Ramsey; Ollie Watkins

Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”

He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG.org. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.

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