Tottenham will be looking to return to winning ways in the Premier League after a disappointing few weeks. They were frustrated by a managerless West Brom team on Saturday and had to come from behind to secure a point. This came just days after an excellent performance against Borussia Dortmund and the squad are struggling to balance the two competitions. They will be pleased to get an opportunity to get back on track in mid-week, but it won’t be an easy fixture against an improving Leicester City team. In this fixture last season, Spurs ran out 6-1 winners, but that result is unlikely to be repeated.
The home side have climbed up the table since their decision to sack Craig Shakespeare. It was a decision that was viewed as harsh by many, but they have made a good appointment in Claude Puel and the Frenchman is making progress with this Leicester City team. The Foxes have taken eight points from their last five matches and will be looking to continue that positive momentum with a result against Tottenham. The visitors will enter the match as favourites, but this is a good time to play against Mauricio Pochettino’s men and the home side need to approach this game with the intention of winning the match.
The main concern for Tottenham supporters will be their poor results in the league. They have dropped too many points this season and fell out of the top four at the weekend. They are now one point behind local rivals Arsenal and they will be desperate to keep the pressure on the Gunners. It is too early to panic about results, but it is obvious that the team is missing Toby Alderweireld and Victor Wanyama, They don’t look very comfortable at the back and they need to find a combination that works in the absence of two key players.
Interesting stats
Jamie Vardy has scored six goals in the Premier League already and is reaching his best again in a Foxes’ shirt. He will be the dangerman for the home side on Tuesday.
Tottenham have taken only four points from their last four Premier League matches and this run of form has all but ended their title challenge for this season.
Key men
Mahrez
The Algerian international wanted to leave the club during the summer, but he didn’t get his wish. There were some that fearing that the attacker would sulk and not give his all for the team, but he can’t be criticised for his attitude as he continues to give his all for the club. It remains to be seen how much longer the club will be able to keep hold of him, as there will be clubs looking at his situation closely. Matches against the top-six teams offer him a good opportunity to prove that he can compete with the best and he will be looking at this match as a chance to do that. His contribution of two goals and four assists is decent enough, but he will want to improve this considerably over the festive period. He has looked much better on the pitch since the managerial change and he is a player that Tottenham will fear this weekend.
Kane
It is easy to pick Harry Kane as the dangerman for Tottenham every weekend and he will be the player that Leicester will be worried most about ahead of the match at the KP Stadium. He looks set for another great goalscoring campaign, as he is already on nine Premier League goals for the season. This is in addition to six goals in the Champions League. This season will be the year that Kane establishes himself as one of the best strikers in Europe, in addition to being one of the best in the Premier League. He scored the crucial equalising goal against West Brom at the weekend and will be looking to continue that good form in front of goal with another scoring display against the club he was once at on loan.
Team news
Robert Huth and Matty James are the two main injury concerns for Leicester City, as neither featured against West Ham United in their most recent fixture. Demarai Gray is expected to start alongside Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez, in what could be an attacking Foxes’ line-up.
Danny Rose didn’t feature against West Brom as rumblings about his relationship with Mauricio Pochettino continue in the media. The left-back will be hoping to earn a recall for Tuesday, but that remains up in the air. Toby Alderweireld and Victor Wanyama are both out, while Erik Lamela is pushing for a return to the first-team squad.
Verdict
Tottenham will enter the match as favourites, but they will need to improve considerably if they are to earn the three points on Tuesday. Leicester City are a good team with some excellent attacking players that can cause problems for Tottenham. They can enter the match with a nothing to lose attitude and if they do, they will cause a lot of problems for the visitors. Pochettino’s side are not as defensively strong as they usually are due to injuries and that is a problem for them as they head to the KP Stadium. Spurs should win, but it won’t be a great performance.
