NBC Sports Network has a whopping triple-header of Premier League soccer for American fans to enjoy this Sunday, the middle game of which is probably the best of the three. Tottenham and Manchester City are both championship contenders this season, and this early-season six-point swinger is a big one for the Spurs in particular as they try to make the most of their home pitch advantage.
This Premier League duel will go down Sunday, October 2, 2016, at 9:15 a.m. ET at White Hart Lane. The match will be televised live on NBC Sports Network.
Soccer Odds at BookMaker.eu
Tottenham +210
Manchester City +133
Draw +245
Over/Under 2.5
Odds Analysis
Perhaps it's a bit disrespectful to make the Spurs such big underdogs in this match? In actuality, a price of +210 isn't that far off of what you would expect at this level, though it's odd to see Man City lined at just +133 in spite of the fact that it's had some history of struggling on the road in these big time matches in the Premier League.
Still, this year seems different already under Pep Guardiola. The Citizens have won home and away and have poured goals into the back of opposing nets over and over this year with 18 goals over the course of a perfect start to the season.
The total of 2.5 though, is indicative of a Tottenham team that has surrendered just three goals on the season and has featured a total of four goals in three home matches this year.
Key Injuries
Harry Kane is missing from the Tottenham lineup right now, and that's a huge deal. His ankle injury is a big deal for a team that badly needs his game up front if it wants to challenge for the BPL title this season. Moussa Dembele and Eric Dier are both question marks for this match as well.
Manchester City is getting closer to full health, but one only has to look at the 3-3 draw against Celtic in the UCL on Wednesday to see where there are problems. Kevin De Bruyne and Vincent Kompany are still out with long-term injuries for this team. Nolito is in the midst of a three-match ban and won't return to English play until October 15.
Recent Form
After 10 straight victories in competitive play to kick off 2016-17, it was really shocking to see Manchester City only manage a 3-3 draw against Celtic in the second UCL match of the group stage. In the end, there won't be much in the way of consequence for sure for a team that will get through to the knockout rounds, but it was a sign that the Sky Blues are far from perfect at this point.
Tottenham meanwhile, came up with a big 1-0 win at CSKA Moscow to get its Champions League campaign off to mark after a disappointing loss at home to Monaco a couple weeks ago. The Spurs have now won four straight since that point competitively, including a 2-1 win last week at Middlesbrough.
Free Soccer Betting Pick
Our favored play here is the over, even with Kane out of the fold for the Spurs. Son Heung-Min has been so good this year with four goals, and he scored again in the Champions League on Wednesday. And of course, we know that the Citizens can score and score at will, especially with the form Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero are in playing at the top of this formation.
We're also a little concerned here about Tottenham after a trip all the way to Moscow in the middle of the week. Guardiola was clearly more concerned about this match than he was about the UCL in the middle of the week, while Tottenham seemed more worried about the trip to Moscow than anything else. Motivation should show by the end of these 90 minutes as well, though again, the over is our favorite play of the bunch.
Premier League Odds: Manchester City 4, Tottenham 2
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