Both Spurs and Stoke got off to rocky starts last week. Spurs dominated Manchester City for most of their game, but thanks to Joe Hart and a couple of bad misses, they walked away with a 0-0 draw. In the middle of the week, they traveled to Bern to take on Young Boys in Champions League qualification where they were thoroughly embarrassed, yet were able to somehow stop the bleeding after 30 minutes and find a couple of goals as they lost 3-2. It will be interesting to see if their poor start to that match and failure to find the back of the net against Manchester City will have any effect on their confidence.
Stoke lost 2-1 away to Wolves in a match where many expected them to get at least a point. New signing Kenwyne Jones had a bad injury scare, but Stoke were fortunate that his injury was only minor and he could be on the bench for them on Saturday. Still, he is unlikely to be in the starting lineup which means that more will be expected of Ricardo Fuller and Tuncay Sanli.
The Wednesday fixture against Young Boys will probably be Harry's #1 priority, and as a result, I expect to see Ledley King rested again. The Bassong-Dawson partnership was not an effective one, so Younes Kaboul might get a shot to pair whichever one Harry found less competent. Peter Crouch and Aaron Lennon were both rested on Tuesday, so expect both of them to start against Stoke. Luka Modric and Jermaine Defoe are listed as very doubtful, so expect to see Robbie Keane or Giovani Dos Santos up top and either Gareth Bale or Giovani Dos Santos on the left. Personally, my bet is on Robbie up top and Gio wide left. After Ekotto's awful performance against Young Boys, Bale may be needed at left back.
Stoke and Tottenham play very similar tactics, so I expect talent to win out. 3-1 to Spurs.
Stoke lost 2-1 away to Wolves in a match where many expected them to get at least a point. New signing Kenwyne Jones had a bad injury scare, but Stoke were fortunate that his injury was only minor and he could be on the bench for them on Saturday. Still, he is unlikely to be in the starting lineup which means that more will be expected of Ricardo Fuller and Tuncay Sanli.
The Wednesday fixture against Young Boys will probably be Harry's #1 priority, and as a result, I expect to see Ledley King rested again. The Bassong-Dawson partnership was not an effective one, so Younes Kaboul might get a shot to pair whichever one Harry found less competent. Peter Crouch and Aaron Lennon were both rested on Tuesday, so expect both of them to start against Stoke. Luka Modric and Jermaine Defoe are listed as very doubtful, so expect to see Robbie Keane or Giovani Dos Santos up top and either Gareth Bale or Giovani Dos Santos on the left. Personally, my bet is on Robbie up top and Gio wide left. After Ekotto's awful performance against Young Boys, Bale may be needed at left back.
Stoke and Tottenham play very similar tactics, so I expect talent to win out. 3-1 to Spurs.