Tottenham Hotspur will be looking for their third victory of the campaign when they lock horns with Burnley at Turf Moor on Monday.
Tottenham Hotspur are aiming to maintain their excellent away record when they travel to Turf Moor to face Burnley on Monday. The north London have secured two wins in their opening five Premier League matches, with both of them coming in away matches against Southampton and Manchester United respectively.
Jose Mourinho’s side will look to take some extra confidence from a confident 3-0 victory over LASK, in what was their opening group game of the UEFA Europa League. But after giving away an unassailable 3-0 lead to West Ham in their last Premier League match, keeping a clean sheet will remain a priority for the Lilywhites.
Fortunately for them, Burnley could be an ideal opponent to improve their defensive record as the Clarets boast one of the weakest offensive units in the league. They are, in fact, the joint lowest scorers in the league so far, finding the back of the net only thrice in five matches – a tally only matched by Sheffield United.
As a result, Burnley are indeed joined by Blades and the newly promoted duo of Fulham and West Brom as the worst-performing teams in the new season, having yet to secure a win so far this campaign.
That said, a positive result against Tottenham could serve as a major confidence booster for Sean Dyche’s men. And here, at the Hard Tackle, we will run the rule over the two sides ahead of their fascinating encounter in the Premier League on Monday.
Tactics & Team News
Burnley
Burnley have the advantage of not having a congested fixture list like Tottenham, meaning they are coming on the back of a strong week’s rest, following their goalless draw with West Brom in the last match.
That, however, wasn’t enough for Ben Mee to return to full fitness as the key defender is only back in training. Mee is joined by Jack Cork in Burnley’s list of absentees in the defensive unit, meaning Dyche may once again have to rely on the central defensive partnership between James Tarkowski and Kevin Long.
Matthew Lowton, however, has been ruled fit again and should replace Erik Pieters at right-back, with Neil Taylor occupying the opposite flank, as usual. Nick Pope is a guaranteed starter in between the sticks.
The second bank of four in Burnley’s 4-4-2 should consist of Johann Berg Gudmundsson, Ashley Westwood, Josh Brownhill and Dwight McNeil as the Clarets look to frustrate their opposition with a strong second line of press.
Gudmundsson and McNeil, however, will also be in charge of providing adequate creative support for the two central strikers in Ashley Barnes and Chris Wood by whipping in crosses from the byline. It will be interesting to see whether or not these two strikers can rekindle their scoring form on Monday.
Probable Lineup (4-4-2): Pope; Lowton, Long, Tarkowski, Taylor; Gudmundsson, Westwood, Brownhill, McNeil; Barnes, Wood.
Tottenham Hotspur
Mourinho is expected to ring in the changes following a midweek fixture against LASK. Unfortunately, however, the Tottenham boss will continue to miss out on the services of defender Japhet Tanganga while Eric Dier remains a doubt after picking up an injury during the international break earlier this month.
Nonetheless, Toby Alderweireld should return to the starting lineup, forming the central defensive partnership with Davinson Sanchez. New signing Joe Rodon is also an option for Mourinho, however.
Elsewhere, Serge Aurier is set to replace Matt Doherty at right-back, though the same cannot be said for Sergio Reguilon, having enjoyed a phenomenal start to his Spurs career. Hugo Lloris, meanwhile, is also likely to return in goal, at the expense of Joe Hart.
In midfield, Harry Winks, unfortunately, may have to make way for Moussa Sissoko, whose physicality and aggression should combine well with the smart and intelligent presence of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg. These two will receive additional support from the highly talented Tanguy Ndombele in the number ten role, although Giovani Lo Celso is also an option for Mourinho.
And finally, in the attack, Gareth Bale should return to the bench after failing to showcase his full physical capacity in the midweek fixture. Steven Bergwijn is a favourite to start, in his stead, occupying the wide offensive role alongside Son Heung-Min, whose partnership with striker Harry Kane could be critical in this fixture.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Lloris; Aurier, Sanchez, Alderweireld, Reguilon; Sissoko, Hojbjerg, Ndombele; Bergwijn, Kane, Son.
Key Stats
- Burnley’s only win in their past 23 Premier League home fixtures against established top-six opposition came at the expense of Spurs in February 2019.
- Tottenham Hotspur are only the third club to score more than 10 goals in their opening two away matches of a top-flight season (5-2 v Southampton and 6-1 v Manchester United). Sunderland, in 1892-93, and Middlesbrough, in 1935-36, both scored 12.
- Spurs are looking to win their first three away games of a Premier League season for only the second time, emulating the 2017-18 campaign
- Burnley have won just two of their 12 Premier League games against Tottenham, at Turf Moor in 2009-10 and 2018-19.
- Since Burnley’s return to the Premier League in 2016-17, only Southampton have had more than their 13 goalless draws in the division.
Player to Watch
Son Heung-Min
When these two sides met in north London last season, it was Son Heung-Min who stole the show with a mesmerising individual effort to help Tottenham seal a 5-0 win. He even won the 2019-20 Premier League Goal of the Season for that effort, and as he returns to play against the Clarets, he will be setting a similar target.
The South Korean international has already hit the ground running in the new campaign, scoring seven goals in just five Premier League outings. His seemingly telepathic combination play with Kane has made life incredibly difficult for the opposing defences and Burnley could be in for a similar beating on Monday.
Hence, it will be imperative for Dyche to come out with a definitive plan to prevent Son from imposing his authority in the final third for Spurs if Burnley are to have any chances of salvaging anything from this game.
Prediction
Tottenham Hotspur 3-0 Burnley
It is difficult to see Tottenham dropping points in this fixture since they have had an impeccable record away from home this season while they are also coming on the back of a comfortable 3-0 victory over LASK in midweek. We are expecting yet another easy win for Mourinho’s men on Monday.
