Sports Mole

Chelsea midfielder Moises Caicedo is now at high risk of missing some important Premier League fixtures due to suspension.

The 23-year-old was booked for a fourth straight match in the 4-0 victory over Southampton on Tuesday night, taking his Premier League tally to nine for the season.

Caicedo avoided picking up a one-match ban for five yellows as his fifth came in the win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on gameweek 22, which is after the cutoff point where that offence is no longer punishable with suspension.

However, the cards have now piled up for the Ecuadorian international, and another silly one while the Blues were in complete control against the Saints in midweek leaves him vulnerable to a two-match ban.

Caicedo to miss Arsenal, Spurs clashes?

If Caicedo is to pick up another booking in their home clash against Leicester City on March 9, he will then be ruled out of their enticing all-London affairs against Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur.

A ban looks very likely at some point in the season for the midfielder, because Chelsea will play another five Premier League games before the window ends for suspension for 10 yellow cards.

That will be on gameweek 32, when Chelsea face Ipswich Town at Stamford Bridge, but with the battle for the Champions League places so tight, manager Enzo Maresca cannot afford to stifle Caicedo's style of play, or to protect him by leaving him out of the starting XI.

With tricky trips across West London to Brentford and Fulham on the horizon in April too, Caicedo's potential absence would be notable, and Chelsea need their best possible XI available to them, given their current predicament.

Maresca's side did briefly move back into the top four on Tuesday, but Manchester City overtook them courtesy of a 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur 24 hours later.

The race for the top-five is devilishly tight, with any dropped points set to be costly, as just six points separate third and 10th.

How likely is a two-match ban for Caicedo?

Will Hughes became the first Premier League player to amass 10 Premier League bookings this season when he was yellow carded against Aston Villa, and the Crystal Palace midfielder will now miss their next two matches.

If the last two Premier League seasons are anything to go by, then Caicedo is set to join him, as he has received a double-figure tally of yellow cards in both.

In his final season at Brighton in 2022-23 Caicedo picked up 10 in the league and 12 in all competitions, while he collected 11 in his debut league season at Chelsea last year, and a further three in cup competitions.

Caicedo has played all 27 Premier League games for Chelsea so far this season, and, injury permitting, will do so again against Leicester, but he now knows he must watch his step carefully.

Tottenham Hotspur forward Son Heung-min is reportedly wanted by Bayern Munich, with the attacker said to be keen to move to a club with greater ambition.

Spurs were beaten 1-0 by Manchester City on Wednesday night, and the loss brought to an end a period of three consecutive Premier League victories.

Ange Postecoglou's side are now 13th in the table with just 33 points, and are 14 points from City, who occupy the fourth and final Champions League qualification spot.

Winning the Europa League looks like the Londoners best chance of securing European football, but a European triumph this season cannot detract from the club's dismal domestic season.

In more bad news for Spurs fans, Fichajes claim that Bayern Munich could swoop for legend Son Heung-min, who is reportedly frustrated by Tottenham's lack of ambition.

Should Spurs let Son go?

Son managed to provide two assists for Tottenham during his side's 4-1 win against Ipswich Town on February 22, and he was undoubtedly one of the best players on the pitch.

However, the 32-year-old has at times been criticised for his performances this campaign, and given he will be 33 in July, some sections of the fanbase worry that his best may be behind him.

In the Premier League in 2024-25, the winger has scored six goals and provided nine assists, and these figures currently make this season the second least productive of his Tottenham career.

To Son's credit, he only needs to be involved in six more goals and assists to equal the tally he achieved in 2019-20, which was his fourth most productive season at Spurs in the league.

The South Korean international will have just a year left on his Spurs contract in the summer, so a decision will need to be made about whether to extend him and risk that his performance levels decline while at the club.

A reunion with Kane?

Former Tottenham striker Harry Kane made the switch to Bayern in the summer of 2023-24 after spending 11 seasons with Spurs and scoring 213 Premier League goals.

Despite his tally making him the division's second highest goalscorer ever, the Englishman failed to win silverware with the club.

Son has scored 126 Premier League goals and is currently the joint 17th highest scorer in the competition's history, but trophy success has so far alluded him.

If the winger moved to Bayern in the summer window there is every chance that he could end his silverware drought, especially given the German giants have dominated the Bundesliga, winning 11 of the last 12 titles on offer.

Aiming to become the first club to beat both Manchester City and Manchester United three times in the same season, Tottenham Hotspur host the Premier League champions on Wednesday evening.

Ange Postecoglou's troops were convincing 4-1 victors over Ipswich Town on Saturday, one day before the Sky Blues were bested 2-0 by Liverpool, and here Sports Mole rounds up the team news for both clubs.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR vs. MANCHESTER CITY

© Imago

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

Out: Radu Dragusin (ACL), Dominic Solanke (knee), Richarlison (calf), Cristian Romero (thigh), Micky van de Ven (thigh), Ben Davies (load management)

Doubtful: Timo Werner (hamstring)

Sports Mole's predicted XI: Vicario; Porro, Gray, Danso, Spence; Maddison, Bentancur, Sarr; Kulusevski, Johnson, Son

MANCHESTER CITY

Out: Rodri (ACL), Oscar Bobb (ankle), Manuel Akanji (abductor), John Stones (thigh)

Doubtful: Erling Haaland (knee)

Sports Mole's predicted XI: Ederson; Lewis, Khusanov, Dias, Gvardiol; Gonzalez, Kovacic; Savinho, Silva, Doku; Marmoush

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match .

Tottenham Hotspur head coach Ange Postecoglou has revealed that Ben Davies will miss out on selection for the Manchester City game on Wednesday night.

The North Londoners head into their latest Premier League fixture having put together a three-match winning streak in the competition.

Victories have been recorded over Brentford, Manchester United and Ipswich Town respectively, Spurs moving into 12th place in the standings.

Postecoglou's side have improved at the same time as a number of players have been able to return to the squad after varying periods on the sidelines.

Nevertheless, speaking to the club's official website on Tuesday, Postecoglou acknowledged that his squad would not be facilitating Davies in the short term.

What did Postecoglou say?

Davies has played a key role in the absences of Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven, making a total of 16 starts and two substitute outings in all competitions.

However, having missed the game with Ipswich at the weekend with an undisclosed issue, Postecoglou has ruled the Wales international out for a second match.

He said: "Good news, everyone who played got through really well. It's great that we could give guys like Madders (James Maddison) and Pedro [Porro] a bit of a rest and still be able to come on, and contribute, and get game time into Brennan [Johnson] and Destiny [Udogie].

"They all came through really well. So, that means it will be a similar squad for tomorrow.

"We were hoping maybe Ben would be ready for this game, he won't make it, but we've a seven-day break (after City), so, he'll miss out."

Similar starting lineup?

As Postecoglou alluded to, he was able to rest players during the second half at Portman Road, as well as hand opportunities to squad members who have spent time on the sidelines.

With Romero and Van de Ven still at least a week away from a return to the squad, it appears plausible that Archie Gray will partner Kevin Danso in the middle of the defence.

Tottenham Hotspur head coach Ange Postecoglou has revealed that Ben Davies will miss out on selection for the Manchester City game on Wednesday night.

The North Londoners head into their latest Premier League fixture having put together a three-match winning streak in the competition.

Victories have been recorded over Brentford, Manchester United and Ipswich Town respectively, Spurs moving into 12th place in the standings.

Postecoglou's side have improved at the same time as a number of players have been able to return to the squad after varying periods on the sidelines.

Nevertheless, speaking to the club's official website on Tuesday, Postecoglou acknowledged that his squad would not be facilitating Davies in the short term.

What did Postecoglou say?

Davies has played a key role in the absences of Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven, making a total of 16 starts and two substitute outings in all competitions.

However, having missed the game with Ipswich at the weekend with an undisclosed issue, Postecoglou has ruled the Wales international out for a second match.

He said: "Good news, everyone who played got through really well. It's great that we could give guys like Madders (James Maddison) and Pedro [Porro] a bit of a rest and still be able to come on, and contribute, and get game time into Brennan [Johnson] and Destiny [Udogie].

"They all came through really well. So, that means it will be a similar squad for tomorrow.

"We were hoping maybe Ben would be ready for this game, he won't make it, but we've a seven-day break (after City), so, he'll miss out."

Similar starting lineup?

As Postecoglou alluded to, he was able to rest players during the second half at Portman Road, as well as hand opportunities to squad members who have spent time on the sidelines.

With Romero and Van de Ven still at least a week away from a return to the squad, it appears plausible that Archie Gray will partner Kevin Danso in the middle of the defence.

A slice of English football history is on the line for Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday evening, when Ange Postecoglou's men host Premier League champions Manchester City in the pick of the midweek fixtures.

Having already slain the Citizens twice while defeating Manchester United three times in 2024-25, Spurs could become the first team to ever beat both Manchester giants on three occasions in a single campaign.

Match preview

Ipswich Town marksman Liam Delap bullying the Tottenham defence early doors was not a sign of things to come at Portman Road on Saturday, where Tottenham successfully avenged their shock home defeat to the Tractor Boys earlier in the season with a 4-1 pummelling of the newly-promoted side.

Back in a Premier League starting lineup for the first time in a month, Brennan Johnson was at the double thanks to pair of assists from Son Heung-min, before rejuvenated right-back Djed Spence and the influential Dejan Kulusevski also got in on the act.

Omari Hutchinson's slick first-time strike had briefly given Postecoglou's men something to think about, but the Lilywhites quickly rediscovered their groove as they marched to consecutive Premier League win number three, one that has cemented their 12th-placed ranking in the table.

Such a mediocre standing is still unacceptable for a club of Spurs' stature, as Postecoglou himself has been upfront about, but the North London giants have unsurprisingly quashed any fleeting talk of a relegation dogfight since recovering a plethora of fundamental players from injury.

Wednesday's hosts are now going in search of four straight Premier League successes for the first time since October 2023, when Postecoglou was working his magic and then some in the English capital, and after conceding in 10 consecutive home games between October 30 and January 4, Tottenham have now kept a clean sheet in three of their last four.

Scoring in a sensational 18 straight matches at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium also stands the Lilywhites in good stead, but Man City's own 16-game scoring streak home and away in all competitions ceased to exist by the close of play on Sunday evening.

Supported by both the blue half of Manchester and the red half of North London, Pep Guardiola's men failed in their mission to halt Liverpool's seemingly unstoppable surge to Premier League glory, succumbing to goals from Mohamed Salah and Dominik Szoboszlai in a 2-0 loss to the champions-elect.

Possession was not the problem for the holders at the Etihad, but with the injured Erling Haaland helplessly watching on from afar, their lack of a focal point stuck out like a sore thumb as they were condemned to their third loss from four across all tournaments, the other two coming to Real Madrid.

Nevertheless, Guardiola's crop are just about clinging onto the final top-four slot in the Premier League table, although wins for Chelsea and Aston Villa on Tuesday will bump them down to sixth, and only two of the visitors' last nine Premier League away games have ended in triumph.

Both of those wins also came against relegation-threatened outfits in Leicester City and Ipswich Town, and having already been bested 4-0 and 2-1 by Spurs in this season's Premier League and EFL Cup respectively, the champions ought to proceed with caution at one of their least favourite haunts.

Tottenham Hotspur Premier League form:

Tottenham Hotspur form (all competitions):

Manchester City Premier League form:

Manchester City form (all competitions):

Team News

Tottenham may still be a ways away from having a fully-fit squad again, but Postecoglou only has five guaranteed absentees for Wednesday's blockbuster in Radu Dragusin (ACL), Dominic Solanke (knee), Richarlison (calf), Cristian Romero (thigh) and Micky van de Ven (thigh).

Timo Werner's hamstring problem might settle down in time for him to be involved against City, whom he scored his only goal of the season against so far in the EFL Cup, while Ben Davies's absence from the squad to face Ipswich was simply a case of load management.

Postecoglou also demoted James Maddison and Pedro Porro from the starting XI at Portman Road for the same reason, but the pair should force their way back in on Wednesday, where the former's expected promotion could spell bad news for Mathys Tel.

At the tip of the City attack, Guardiola could offer no guarantees that Haaland's knee injury would be healed in time for the trip to Tottenham, and the three-day turnaround makes the two-time Golden Boot winner a serious doubt for the contest.

However, should Haaland play and indeed score, he would become just the second player to score 10 home goals and 10 away goals in three straight Premier League seasons, following in the footsteps of Tottenham's own Harry Kane.

Rodri (ACL), Oscar Bobb (ankle), Manuel Akanji (abductor) and John Stones (thigh) are also unavailable to Guardiola, who did start Kevin De Bruyne at the weekend but should now wield the axe on the ageing Belgian.

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:

Vicario; Porro, Danso, Davies, Spence; Maddison, Bentancur, Sarr; Kulusevski, Johnson, Son

Manchester City possible starting lineup:

Ederson; Lewis, Khusanov, Dias, Gvardiol; Gonzalez, Kovacic; Savinho, Silva, Doku; Marmoush

We say: Tottenham Hotspur 2-2 Manchester City

Tottenham have lit the blue touch paper in the final third once more and will be working with an additional day's rest than the champions, who should not head home without having conceded a couple of goals on the night.

However, even a City-less Haaland had their moments against Liverpool, and with all due respect to Spurs' centre-backs, they are no Virgil van Dijk or Ibrahima Konate, so Guardiola's men can bite back just as hard to claim a point.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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Tottenham Hotspur have the chance to get one over Manchester City yet again when they clash with the champions in Wednesday's Premier League blockbuster in North London.

Ange Postecoglou's men are on the hunt for a fourth successive Premier League win after easing past Ipswich Town 4-1 over the weekend thanks to goals from Brennan Johnson (2), Djed Spence and Dejan Kulusevski.

Spurs memorably also hit Man City for four at the Etihad back in November, but despite their recent revival, they still languish in the bottom half of the Premier League standings.

Here, Sports Mole rounds up Tottenham's latest injury and suspension news ahead of the contest with Pep Guardiola's side, who are seeking a quick response to their 2-0 loss to leaders Liverpool on Sunday.

Richarlison

© Imago

Status: Out

Type of injury: Calf

Possible return date: March 9 (vs. Bournemouth)

Injury-riddled striker Richarlison is currently working his way back from the calf injury he sustained against Liverpool in the second leg of the EFL Cup semi-finals, and the Brazilian still has another couple of weeks of rehabilitation to go.

Radu Dragusin

© Imago

Status: Out

Type of injury: Knee

Possible return date: Unknown

Romanian centre-back Radu Dragusin recently underwent successful surgery on the ACL problem he sustained in January, one that will sideline him for the rest of the season.

Dominic Solanke

© Imago

Status: Out

Type of injury: Knee

Possible return date: March 9 (vs. Bournemouth)

Star striker Dominic Solanke is also rehabilitating from his own knee injury, albeit one far less serious than Dragusin's, and he might be fit to return against former club Bournemouth next month.

Timo Werner

© Imago

Status: Minor doubt

Type of injury: Hamstring

Possible return date: February 26 (vs. Man City)

Timo Werner should be on the cusp of returning from a recent hamstring injury, but the Germany international was not involved against Ipswich and is therefore doubtful for the clash with City too.

Cristian Romero

© Imago

Status: Out

Type of injury: Thigh

Possible return date: March 9 (vs. Bournemouth)

Cristian Romero's recovery from a quadriceps injury is taking longer than anticipated, but Postecoglou is confident that the Argentine will be fit to return in the early stages of next month.

Micky van de Ven

© Imago

Status: Out

Type of injury: Thigh

Possible return date: March 9 (vs. Bournemouth)

Likewise, Micky van de Ven is expected to spend another couple of weeks on the sidelines as he makes a complete recovery from a thigh injury, which he initially returned from in January before the decision was taken to hold him back.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR'S SUSPENSION LIST

Tottenham Hotspur have no suspended players for this match.

No Data Analysis info

Pep Guardiola has delivered an update on the fitness of Erling Haaland following Manchester City's 2-0 defeat at home to Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday.

Haaland, Man City's top scorer in all competitions this season with 27 goals in 35 games, picked up a knee injury in the closing stages of City's 4-0 win over Newcastle United last weekend.

The Norwegian was subsequently unable to feature in the Citizens' 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League playoff on Wednesday, losing 6-3 on aggregate.

City's No.9 watched on as an unused substitute in the Spanish capital, but he was left out of Guardiola's matchday squad entirely for the Premier League showdown with Liverpool, who breezed to victory at the Etihad courtesy of goals from Mohamed Salah and Dominik Szoboszlai.

Man City were crying out for Haaland's presence against the Premier League leaders, as Omar Marmoush and Phil Foden struggled to put their stamp on the contest while operating in central positions.

The Citizens completed just four of their 21 crosses in the 90 minutes against Liverpool and found it difficult to break down a resilient Reds backline including colossal centre-back duo Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate.

© IconSport

Could Haaland return for Spurs vs. Man City on Wednesday?

Man City, who remain fourth in the Premier League table and now sit a whopping 20 points behind leaders Liverpool, will endeavour to return to winning ways when they take on Tottenham Hotspur in North London on Wednesday night.

Ahead of that contest, Guardiola has provided an update on Haaland's situation and has discussed whether his leading marksman could return for the midweek fixture in the capital.

Speaking at his post-match press conference, Guardiola said: "I don't know [when he will be back]. [It was] a moment against Newcastle he made an action that moved his knee.

"Apparently it's not dangerous because all the examinations dictate that it's fine, but he didn't feel fine.

"I have a feeling it will be soon [when Haaland is back] because [on Saturday] he trained and made some really good movements.

"But he said to us that he's not ready and we have to respect that. Hopefully against Spurs and in the next games he can help us."

Haaland played against Spurs earlier this season in the reverse fixture at the Etihad in November last year, but he was unable to get his name on the scoresheet as Ange Postecoglou's side secured a surprising 4-0 victory in the top flight.

Meanwhile, Man City are still having to cope without long-term absentees Rodri (ACL), Manuel Akanji (abductor) and John Stones (thigh), while it remains unknown as to when Oscar Bobb could return, as he continues to build up his fitness in training after more than six months out with a leg fracture.

No Data Analysis info

On the hunt for a third Premier League win on the spin, Tottenham Hotspur travel to Portman Road to face Ipswich Town, where revenge will be on the mind for Ange Postecoglou and co.

The Lilywhites were memorably beaten by their newly-promoted foes when they welcomed them to North London earlier in the season, a shock scalp which marked the Tractor Boys' first top-flight win of the campaign.

Match preview

As Tottenham gear up for a bottom-half battle on Saturday, last weekend's headline encounter with Manchester United represented another clash between two sides in the lower echelons of the top-flight standings, which few could have surely foreseen at the start of the term.

However, as Man United's injury crisis worsened while Tottenham's eased, Postecoglou's men came up trumps in the clash between two fallen titans, where James Maddison struck the only goal in a 1-0 win before literally 'taking aim' at recent critic Roy Keane with an imaginary dart.

Slaying Ruben Amorim's men - no matter how deep Man United's crisis may be - was the perfect tonic to back-to-back EFL Cup and FA Cup exits for Spurs, whose only hopes of silverware may now be resting on the Europa League, but things may finally be looking up once more.

No longer working around a double-figure absentee list, Postecoglou has seen the Lilywhites shoot up to 12th place in the Premier League rankings, although the Australian was under no illusions last week that their mid-table ranking remains "unacceptable" for a club of their calibre.

Furthermore, the visitors cannot rise any higher up the division no matter what transpires over the weekend, but they could now achieve a feat they have not managed since the days of Antonio Conte in May 2022, win three consecutive Premier League games without conceding.

Ipswich have to travel back an additional 20 years for the last time that they prevailed in three top-flight encounters on the bounce - last doing so in the 2001-02 campaign - and the brilliant beating of Tottenham did not lead to a sustained upturn in fortunes for Kieran McKenna's side.

Only two more Premier League victories have been added to Ipswich's paltry total since then, and the Tractor Boys are still waiting for their first top-flight success of 2025, having failed to triumph in any of their six games in the competition since the turn of the year.

However, taking a point home from a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa last weekend may have felt as good as three for the Tractor Boys, who had to cope with 10 men for the entire second half and forced their foes to come from behind after Liam Delap's 10th Premier League goal of the season.

The heroics of Alex Palmer in goal ensured that Ipswich would snap a four-game losing run in the top division, but they remain two points adrift of safety in 18th position and come into the weekend having lost six of their last seven home games in the Premier League, including each of their last three.

On a more pleasing note, November's surprise win over Spurs in North London means that Ipswich have now conquered their more esteemed opponents four times in a row in the Premier League, and Tottenham's only success from their last six league trips to Portman Road came all the way back in 1994.

Ipswich Town Premier League form:

Ipswich Town form (all competitions):

Tottenham Hotspur Premier League form:

Tottenham Hotspur form (all competitions):

Team News

It was not all good news on the fitness front for Tottenham last week, as Kevin Danso, Rodrigo Bentancur and Son Heung-min were all forcibly withdrawn in the win over Man United, but Postecoglou is confident that all of them were only suffering from minor knocks.

As a result, there is nothing to suggest that the trio will not be fit to face the Tractor Boys, and there is also hope that Timo Werner will return from his hamstring problem in time for Saturday, not that he would be in any position to start, though.

Longer-term absentees Richarlison (calf), Dominic Solanke (knee), Micky van de Ven (thigh), Cristian Romero (thigh) and Radu Dragusin (ACL) are still out of contention, but all except Dragusin are anticipated to return before the next international break.

As for hosts Ipswich, Axel Tuanzebe's sending-off at Villa Park for two bookable offences means that the right-back will serve a one-match suspension on Saturday, where Ben Johnson should drop into a defensive role to cover.

Tuanzebe's ban is one of two fresh blows that the Tractor Boys suffered last weekend, as Julio Enciso hurt his knee just 17 minutes into the contest and has now joined Wes Burns (knee), Conor Chaplin (knee), Chiedozie Ogbene (calf) and Christian Walton (groin) on the sidelines.

However, none of Szmodics (ankle), Sam Morsy (abdominal) or Leif Davis (unspecified) have been ruled out of Saturday's game just yet; the latter was a "really late call" for the Villa draw before ultimately missing out.

Ipswich Town possible starting lineup:

Palmer; Johnson, O'Shea, Greaves, Davis; Cajuste, Phillips; Philogene, Hutchinson, Clarke; Delap

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:

Vicario; Porro, Danso, Davies, Spence; Bergvall, Bentancur, Maddison; Kulusevski, Tel, Son

We say: Ipswich Town 0-2 Tottenham Hotspur

As praiseworthy as Ipswich's point was at Villa Park, the Tractor Boys needed an inspired Palmer to get them out of jail time and time again, and their Premier League home woes are extremely well-documented.

McKenna's men should not be blown to smithereens by any stretch, but a Tottenham side boosted both confidence-wise and numbers-wise have our vote to complete their East Anglian revenge mission.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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On the hunt for a third Premier League win on the spin, Tottenham Hotspur travel to Portman Road to face Ipswich Town, where revenge will be on the mind for Ange Postecoglou and co.

The Lilywhites were memorably beaten by their newly-promoted foes when they welcomed them to North London earlier in the season, a shock scalp which marked the Tractor Boys' first top-flight win of the campaign.

Match preview

As Tottenham gear up for a bottom-half battle on Saturday, last weekend's headline encounter with Manchester United represented another clash between two sides in the lower echelons of the top-flight standings, which few could have surely foreseen at the start of the term.

However, as Man United's injury crisis worsened while Tottenham's eased, Postecoglou's men came up trumps in the clash between two fallen titans, where James Maddison struck the only goal in a 1-0 win before literally 'taking aim' at recent critic Roy Keane with an imaginary dart.

Slaying Ruben Amorim's men - no matter how deep Man United's crisis may be - was the perfect tonic to back-to-back EFL Cup and FA Cup exits for Spurs, whose only hopes of silverware may now be resting on the Europa League, but things may finally be looking up once more.

No longer working around a double-figure absentee list, Postecoglou has seen the Lilywhites shoot up to 12th place in the Premier League rankings, although the Australian was under no illusions last week that their mid-table ranking remains "unacceptable" for a club of their calibre.

Furthermore, the visitors cannot rise any higher up the division no matter what transpires over the weekend, but they could now achieve a feat they have not managed since the days of Antonio Conte in May 2022, win three consecutive Premier League games without conceding.

Ipswich have to travel back an additional 20 years for the last time that they prevailed in three top-flight encounters on the bounce - last doing so in the 2001-02 campaign - and the brilliant beating of Tottenham did not lead to a sustained upturn in fortunes for Kieran McKenna's side.

Only two more Premier League victories have been added to Ipswich's paltry total since then, and the Tractor Boys are still waiting for their first top-flight success of 2025, having failed to triumph in any of their six games in the competition since the turn of the year.

However, taking a point home from a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa last weekend may have felt as good as three for the Tractor Boys, who had to cope with 10 men for the entire second half and forced their foes to come from behind after Liam Delap's 10th Premier League goal of the season.

The heroics of Alex Palmer in goal ensured that Ipswich would snap a four-game losing run in the top division, but they remain two points adrift of safety in 18th position and come into the weekend having lost six of their last seven home games in the Premier League, including each of their last three.

On a more pleasing note, November's surprise win over Spurs in North London means that Ipswich have now conquered their more esteemed opponents four times in a row in the Premier League, and Tottenham's only success from their last six league trips to Portman Road came all the way back in 1994.

Ipswich Town Premier League form:

Ipswich Town form (all competitions):

Tottenham Hotspur Premier League form:

Tottenham Hotspur form (all competitions):

Team News

It was not all good news on the fitness front for Tottenham last week, as Kevin Danso, Rodrigo Bentancur and Son Heung-min were all forcibly withdrawn in the win over Man United, but Postecoglou is confident that all of them were only suffering from minor knocks.

As a result, there is nothing to suggest that the trio will not be fit to face the Tractor Boys, and there is also hope that Timo Werner will return from his hamstring problem in time for Saturday, not that he would be in any position to start, though.

Longer-term absentees Richarlison (calf), Dominic Solanke (knee), Micky van de Ven (thigh), Cristian Romero (thigh) and Radu Dragusin (ACL) are still out of contention, but all except Dragusin are anticipated to return before the next international break.

As for hosts Ipswich, Axel Tuanzebe's sending-off at Villa Park for two bookable offences means that the right-back will serve a one-match suspension on Saturday, where Ben Johnson should drop into a defensive role to cover.

Tuanzebe's ban is one of two fresh blows that the Tractor Boys suffered last weekend, as Julio Enciso hurt his knee just 17 minutes into the contest and has now joined Wes Burns (knee), Conor Chaplin (knee), Chiedozie Ogbene (calf) and Christian Walton (groin) on the sidelines.

However, none of Szmodics (ankle), Sam Morsy (abdominal) or Leif Davis (unspecified) have been ruled out of Saturday's game just yet; the latter was a "really late call" for the Villa draw before ultimately missing out.

Ipswich Town possible starting lineup:

Palmer; Johnson, O'Shea, Greaves, Davis; Cajuste, Phillips; Philogene, Hutchinson, Clarke; Delap

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:

Vicario; Porro, Danso, Davies, Spence; Bergvall, Bentancur, Maddison; Kulusevski, Tel, Son

We say: Ipswich Town 0-2 Tottenham Hotspur

As praiseworthy as Ipswich's point was at Villa Park, the Tractor Boys needed an inspired Palmer to get them out of jail time and time again, and their Premier League home woes are extremely well-documented.

McKenna's men should not be blown to smithereens by any stretch, but a Tottenham side boosted both confidence-wise and numbers-wise have our vote to complete their East Anglian revenge mission.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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