Tottenham Hotspur Vs. Wigan, 2012 Premier League: Preview, There's A Match On Deadline Day

The transfer window is possibly the most hideous thing ever invented and January is worse than summer. For an entire month all we hear is stupid rumor after stupid rumor about who we are or aren't buying and who we're going to sell (everyone) and none of it makes sense. It is the ultimate in evil. It is also really fun and the deadline day is the craziest, worst, best of it all as 8,000 "done deals" are sifted through. We won't get to enjoy all of it though because Spurs have to play a match on deadline day. Sure, it kicks off 45 minutes after the close of the window, but deals that get done in time and aren't announced until an hour after the window closes all the time. So with that I say to the Premier League schedulers, you are unkind.

At least the schedulers were nice enough to schedule Wigan at home on deadline day. If they had scheduled another Sky Six team then we'd be nervously rolling around on the floor and telling our girlfriends that all her friends are stupid and if she listens to their crap then she is equally as stupid out of anxiety (or was that just me?). By playing Wigan, we get a nice break where we just watch 90 minutes, Spurs win and no matter what happens at the deadline, we're in a good mood (we will ignore the possibility of a loss for our own sanity).

With Gareth Bale set to return, it should be a romp down the left for Spurs unless you have some odd fascination with Robbie Stam and think he's actually a good player. With Aaron Lennon likely to miss the match, things are a little tricky on the right. Jermain Defoe's absence means that Rafael van der Vaart on the right with two strikers is less likely, unless Roman Pavlyuchenko is given a chance to rekindle his romance with Row Z. That means Luka Modric could be pushed out with with Jake Livermore getting a nod, but at this point, who really knows?

More importantly, does it really matter. Of course having your best players available helps, but does the absence of one or two change Spurs' ability to beat the bottom team on the table at home? It shouldn't. Even with a couple absences and Jean Beausejour joining the Latics, this is a match Spurs need three points from. It's the kind of match they didn't get full points from a year ago, but the club maintains they are a different team this year. Let's see it.