Tottenham Hotspur will welcome Norwich City to White Hart Lane for a Boxing Day encounter. Both teams won in their last games, so each will be confident going into this fixture. Naturally, though, Spurs should be considered the favourites for this one.
Expectations
A midweek break from the Europa League was enough to rejuvenate Spurs and help them to beat Southampton 2-0 away from home. First-half goals from Harry Kane and Dele Alli were enough to carry Spurs through the remainder of the game, allowing for Mauricio Pochettino to beat his former club.
Tottenham get to enjoy another midweek break before playing this weekend, which will let them line-up fresh. Playing at home will be an even greater benefit for them, considering it will have been Christmas the day before. Also working to Spurs’ advantage is how there are no serious injuries to key players. Left-back Danny Rose could recover from illness to play, giving Pochettino his first-choice defence.
Last Saturday, Norwich adopted the familiar blueprint of sitting back and letting Man Utd make a slew of sideways and backward passes just to try and keep possession. Norwich simply had to wait for Man Utd’s toothless attacks to break down before striking on the counter. The Canaries managed to rush ahead to a two-goal lead before holding out for a 2-1 victory.
Although Man Utd held 69% possession, they could not create more than two shots on target. However, that ineptitude is more due to Man Utd being poor than to Norwich’s defence being great. Alarmingly, the Canaries have conceded 19 away goals in only nine games. They could struggle greatly against Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen.
Match Tips
Tip one: Tottenham @ 1.40
Tip two: Tottenham and over 2.5 Goals @ 2.00
Norwich deserve credit for beating Man Utd 2-1, but Tottenham are a much better team right now. Additionally, Tottenham’s two weeks of enjoying midweek breaks have helped them to get some vital rest ahead of the busy festive period. Combine Tottenham with over 2.5 goals to increase the odds from 1.40 to 2.00
