Match Preview - Tottenham (a)

[Jourdan]

Tomorrow, Derby head down to North London to face a struggling Spurs side, rocked by injuries to key players and two straight defeats. Both sides are looking to register their first win of the season.

Last Time At White Hart Lane

Tottenham 3-1 Derby (2001/02)

Recent History

In the last few decades, Spurs have failed to live up to expectations. Their brand of football has been enjoyable to watch, but not always effective, as the League Cup success under George Graham is the sole piece of silverware for the club since the Premier League began. The doors into White Hart Lane have been revolving as managers have come and gone, tried and failed to bring the success to White Hart Lane that the fans sought.

The latest manager to take the reins is Martin Jol, who replaced Jacques Santini early in the 2004/05 season. The Dutchman has overseen a promising period for the club. They have built a squad brimming with talented youngsters and have been on the brink of Champions League football in the past two seasons. Last season, they finished 5th and reached the latter stages of the UEFA Cup before being defeated by defending champions Sevilla.

Summer Signings

Jol has spent over £30m in an attempt to bridge the gap between themselves and the top four - Man Utd, Liverpool and bitter rivals Chelsea and Arsenal.

The club grabbed the headlines when they captured England international striker Darren Bent for £16.5m from relegated Charlton. Questions have been raised about the price paid for the former Ipswich forward. They also beat off several clubs to lure 18 year old Welsh international Gareth Bale to the club in a deal that could see his former club Southampton pocket up to £10m. More defenders headed to the Lane - centre back Younes Kaboul transferred from French side Auxerre for £8m and Yuri Berchiche left Athletic Bilbao to further his development through playing football in England. The North London outfit also added to their ranks in midfield by securing moves for 18 year old French midfielder Adel Taarabt from Lens, former Leeds starlet Danny Rose and German Under 21 international Kevin-Prince Boateng.

Out of the door at the Lane were youngsters Emil Halfredsson, Reto Ziegler, Mark Yeates and Charlie Daniels.

Form

Spurs won all their pre-season friendlies over the summer. In July, it was all too easy against Stevenage Borough as they won 3-1 before edging past Dublin based St Patricks with a 1-0 victory. Their tour of South Africa in the final few weeks of the month brought about 3 more wins - Kaizer Chiefs were the victims of a 2-1 defeat, Orlando Pirates were defeated by the same scoreline before a rematch equated to a resounding 3-0 loss. In August, they continued in the same vein, smashing four past Leyton Orient in a 4-2 success before ending with a 2-0 win over Torino in the showpiece home friendly.

If pre-season was anything to go by, you would have expected that winning mentality to carry over into the regular season but injuries to key players made it difficult. The men in white were shocked by a last-gasp winner by Michael Chopra as they lost away to Sunderland. The Spurs players were left to lick more wounds, as days later, they crumbled at home to Everton, losing 3-1.

One to Watch

Robbie Keane - The 27 year old Republic of Ireland international is a natural goalscorer, who has scored for every club he has played for (bar a nightmare time at Inter). After coming through the ranks at Crumlin Utd, he burst onto the footballing scene during his time at Wolves - scoring 29 goals over 88 appearances. This form earnt him a £6m move to fellow West Midlands side Coventry. He netted 12 in 34 appearances, which prompted Inter boss at that time, Marcelo Lippi to splash out £13m to lure him to Italy. But Keane struggled to settle in Italy as internal problems at the club restricted his first team chances. He joined Leeds on loan in 2000, before making the switch permanent in 2001 for £12m. He bagged 19 goals in 50 appearances for the club. He arrived at current club Spurs in 2002 where he has endeared himself to the fans with his consistent goalscoring. He is also a favourite in his native Ireland, where he is the country's leading goalscorer of all time.

Predicted Line Ups

Tottenham - Robinson, Chimbonda, Rocha, Gardner, Lee Young-Pyo, Routledge, Jenas, Zokora, Malbranque, Bent, Keane

Derby - Bywater, Mears, Moore, Davis, Griffin, Fagan, Oakley, Todd, Feilhaber, Pearson, Howard

Player Battles

Howard vs. Gardner - Anthony Gardner has worked his way back into the first team picture due to the club's injury crisis and he will have to use his strength and aerial ability to frustrate the Rams striker who is the focal point of the newly promoted side.

Oakley vs. Zokora - Didier Zokora arrived at Spurs last season to add a mean streak to their midfield and he will have to be at his nastiest to dilute the influence of captain Matt Oakley.

Davis vs. Keane - The powerful Jamaican defender will have to keep an eye on the pacy, predatory and intelligent Irishman Robbie Keane, who has troubled defences all his career.

Odds (courtesy of Ladbrokes.com - 17/08/2007)

Tottenham to win - 4/9
Draw - 13/5
Derby to win - 11/2

Virtual Betting

No bets have been placed on this game.

Jourdan predicts....1-1

[MossytheRam]

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