Tottenham host reigning champions Manchester City in a tough first Premier League assignment of the season this afternoon.
It is the first competitive match in charge of Spurs for new manager Nuno Espirito Santo, while the high-profile fixture - a replay of last season’s Carabao Cup Final - is being played against the backdrop of the ongoing Harry Kane show.
Kane has been pushing for a big-money move to the Etihad this summer, but Tottenham have thus far refused to sell their talisman, who might not play here due to a limited amount of time available to train with his team-mates ahead of the game.
Recent reports suggest that the England captain may even be open to signing a new contract in N17 as the summer’s biggest transfer saga continues.
Spurs will be on a high after their pre-season win over arch-rivals Arsenal, while they also fought back to draw 2-2 at Chelsea following comfortable wins over MK Dons and Colchester and a draw with Leyton Orient.
Meanwhile, City will be eager to get their latest title defence off to a winning start after Kelechi Iheanacho’s late penalty saw them beaten 1-0 by Leicester in the Community Shield at Wembley last weekend.
Date, kick-off time and venue
Tottenham vs Manchester City is scheduled for a 4:30pm BST kick-off today, Sunday, August 15, 2021.
The match will take place at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with a full crowd in attendance.
Where to watch Tottenham vs Man City
TV channel: The match will be televised live on Sky Sports’ Premier League and Main Event channels, with coverage beginning at 4pm - after Newcastle vs West Ham has concluded.
Live stream: Sky Sports subscribers will be able to watch the match online via the website or Sky Go app.
Tottenham vs Man City team news and lineups
Man City XI: Ederson, Cancelo, Dias, Ake, Mendy, Fernandinho (C), Gundogan, Grealish, Mahrez, Torres, Sterling
Subs: Steffen, Walker, Stones, Jesus, Zinchenko, Laporte, Rodrigo, De Bruyne, Bernardo
Tottenham XI: Lloris, Tanganga, Sanchez, Dier, Reguilon, Skipp, Hojbjerg, Bergwijn, Dele, Lucas Moura, Son
Subs: Doherty, Romero, Winks, Gil, Sissoko, Lo Celso, Gollini, Davies, Scarlett
Tottenham vs Man City prediction
Much-changed City evidently lacked firepower in the curtain-raiser against Leicester, while Guardiola has bemoaned having so many internationals missing during pre-season with a short time to prepare for the new campaign.
It remains to be seen if Kane will feature for Tottenham, but their results against Chelsea and Arsenal in pre-season proved they have other finishers capable of picking up the slack.
Now is probably a good time to face City, before they start getting into their unstoppable groove.
The visitors will obviously be favourites - as they are in pretty much any game they play - but it wouldn’t surprise me if the Nuno era begins with a confidence-boosting and hard-earned point in an entertaining battle.
Tottenham 2-2 Man City.
Head to head (h2h) history and results
Premier League
Tottenham wins: 25
Draws: 7
Man City wins: 16
Betting odds and tips
- Tottenham to win: 9/2
- Draw: 3/1
- Man City to win: 13/20
