EPL game of the week: Manchester City vs. Tottenham Hotspur

Overview

The English Premier League has another great matchup this weekend, as defending champion Manchester City hosts its home opener against Tottenham Hotspur. Man City enters the match having won its last 15 dating back to February 3. The Sky Blues destroyed West Ham 5-0 in London last weekend to open the season.

Tottenham opened the season with a 3-1 victory at home against Aston Villa, but this will be a big test to see whether it can compete with City. Most fans feel that this year’s Premier League race is between City and Liverpool, and Spurs hope to throw their names into the center of that ring. Check out where you can see the game with our Premier League TV listings.

Manchester City

Manchester City has a lineup that most teams in the world can only dream to attain. Raheem Sterling, Sergio Agüero, Kevin De Bruyne and Gabriel Jesus are all options up front for head coach Pep Guardiola. Throw in midfielders like Riyad Mahrez, David Silva and Fernandinho, and defenders like John Stones and Kyle Walker, and you have a lineup that can be entertaining on all ends.

City didn’t stop there. The club spent $148.8 million to acquire midfielder Rodri and defender João Cancelo. City's main issue this year is whether it can withstand the pressure of aiming for a third straight Premier League title, as well as defending its League Cup and FA Cup titles and challenging for Champions League glory.

Last season the Sky Blues defeated Spurs 1-0 in both meetings, and they’ll hope to stretch out the Spurs defense with their many attacking options. On the defensive end they’ll need to stay together and make sure no one gets behind with the ball on the counter. If they can keep the defensive end clean, they’ll have a nice night at the office.

Tottenham

Spurs enter the season having spent a little bit of money in the offseason for once, bringing in Ryan Sessegnon from Fulham, Tanguy Ndombele from Lyon and Jack Clarke from Leeds. Their biggest loss was the exit of right back Kieran Trippier to Atlético Madrid. That will be a big hole to fill against Manchester City. Kyle Walker-Peters started at right back last week against Aston Villa, but he’s going to need cover against Man City’s wingers.

The biggest question will be whether Christian Eriksen will start. Tottenham is a very different team with Eriksen off the field. He started on the bench against Aston Villa, and the hole in the middle was glaring for the entire first half. When he entered as a substitute, Spurs scored three goals and never looked back. Spurs will need Eriksen, Son Heung-Min and Dele Alli on the field with Harry Kane to have a shot against the Citizens.

Prediction: Manchester City 3-1 (+1050)

City is going to keep Spurs on their heels for the whole of the match, and while Harry Kane (+175) will score one, Raheem Sterling (+100) will be the hero, as City opens its home slate with a 3-1 victory.

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