Spurs handed serious blow ahead of showdown with Manchester City

With a 17:30 GMT kickoff live on Sky Sports, Tottenham Hotspur will make their Premier League comeback this Saturday when they take on Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.

City has been struggling lately, losing four straight games for the first time ever under Pep Guardiola. However, they enter this match with the news that Guardiola has agreed to a new deal with the team, which will provide much-needed clarity and could benefit them on the field going forward.

The return of Kevin De Bruyne, John Stones, Jack Grealish, and Manuel Akanji to first team training prior to this weekend’s match is another factor that will benefit them on the pitch. Having missed the international break, all four players may be ready to play in this match.

Spurs handed big blow by return of four key City players

No matter who is playing for City, it is always a difficult game, but hearing it is still the last thing you want to hear. Without De Bruyne’s cunning, Erling Haaland occasionally comes across as a disgruntled and lonesome character since other City players aren’t as direct or able to locate Haaland as De Bruyne is.

That De Bruyne may play through balls to Haaland, in behind Spurs’ ultra-high line, is a terrifying suggestion. During the international break, the striker scored four goals for Norway, returning to his deadly early-season form.

City has appeared to be quite weak defensively in recent games, giving up several goals per game while also constantly letting up a number of good chances. In that sense, Stones and/or Akanji’s reappearance might be quite beneficial to them.

Spurs’ current situation is truly one of “when it rains, it pours.” Ange’s team will be without a number of players in addition to the City players named above who could participate this weekend. Both Micky van de Ven and Wilson Odobert are absent and could be out until the start of December. Odobert’s absence is medium-term.

The next seven domestic games will be played without Rodrigo Bentancur. Due to an injury he sustained while playing for Argentina on international service, it is still unclear if Cristian Romero will play. However, last season, Spurs managed to secure a 3-3 draw in this match when they were at their lowest, so let’s see