Tottenham Hotspur vs Southampton

Tottenham Hotspur’s pursuit of a coveted Premier League top-four finish continues this midweek as they welcome mid-table Southampton to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Antonio Conte’s unbeaten Premier League start to his Tottenham Hotspur career (W6, D3) was spoiled last time out, with Chelsea inflicting a 2-0 defeat on their London rivals. However, ‘Spurs’ will draw inspiration from their impressive home form under their new manager, having won four of their five Premier League games at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium since Conte’s arrival (D1). Another successful midweek fixture is well on the cards, given that Tottenham have outscored Southampton in each of their last five top-flight H2Hs in London despite failing to keep a clean sheet on each occasion. Adding to this sentiment, Conte has registered a resounding 20 victories from his last 21 home league matches in charge of Inter Milan and Tottenham (D1). He is one won/draw away from equalling the second-best home start to a managerial career at ‘Spurs.’

On the other hand, Southampton head into proceedings in the midst of a rough patch, having won just one of their last four Premier League outings (D2, L1). To Southampton’s credit, those two draws came against non-other than Tottenham and pacesetters Manchester City. Despite picking up just one victory from their last six Premier League away matches (D1, L4), the ‘Saints’ have been fun to watch on the road lately. Each of those six games featured over 2.5 goals, with their last three league travels seeing 4+ goals and both teams on the scoresheet. Worryingly, though, Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men have dropped the league’s second-high 20 points from winning positions this season, drawing five of their last seven Premier League fixtures after taking the lead (W2).