Manchester City vs Tottenham Hotspur preview, team news, tickets and prediction
When you think, “Top of the table clash in the Premier League,” you would not think about Manchester City vs. Tottenham Hotspur.
The Citizens, in the past decade, have become staples in clashes involving title contenders, but Spurs have made a name for themselves as an also-ran in the top four race, not to mention a title challenge. Yet, matchday 14 of the 2023/24 Premier League season will see both teams have a go at each other for the opportunity to grab the top spot in the Premier League.
City are looking to be the first team to win the league title four times in a row, while Spurs are fighting for the first top-flight title in their history.
Spurs are enjoying a better start to their campaign thanks to the "new manager bounce" and the genuinely superb tactics of Ange Postecoglou. The former Australia national football team manager left his role at Celtic in the Scottish Premiership to take one of the most thankless managerial roles in the Premier League. He has renewed the hope of the club's fans despite them losing Harry Kane to Bayern Munich in the summer.
Form does not matter with Manchester City, but even Pep Guardiola will be wary of what Postecoglou's team can do. Spurs have won several games in the dying minutes this term, while City have struggled to score goals in the second half.
The world will watch closely as both teams try to better each other and tilt the scales in their favor come matchday 14.
Fans are scurrying to get tickets to the game, so we have taken the liberty of bringing you information on how to purchase tickets in this article. Read on to also get team news from both clubs and our predictions on the match's outcome.
Match Tickets
Manchester City vs Tottenham Hotspur tickets are almost done selling on the websites of both clubs. A second batch of tickets will be made available soon for fans of either club to purchase.
However, fans interested in getting tickets from the official sources will have to join waiting lists. Where they cannot join, they can use ticket resellers to procure tickets to the high-stakes game. Trusted reselling platforms like Seatsnet.com are there to provide access to tickets.
The game will kick off at 5:30 PM UTC and be played at the Etihad Stadium on December 3, 2023. Fans unable to purchase game tickets can tune in to any official streaming service to catch the game.
Sky Sports streaming (via the Sky Sports app), TNT Sports (via the Discovery+ app), or CBS Sports Golazo (via the Paramount+ app) are some of the platforms that will air the match. A subscription to these apps and channels is needed to access the game.
Sky Sports will also air the match for those who prefer cable television.
Team news
Apart from long-term absentee Kevin De Bruyne, Pep Guardiola is not dealing with any fitness issues in his team. There are also no players serving suspensions ahead of the Manchester City vs. Tottenham Hotspur match whose replacements he will have to worry about. However, he will worry about the overall match fitness of the injury-prone John Stones and Jack Grealish, who has yet to play much football in the 2023/24 season.
Tottenham Hotspur welcomed back Rodrigo Bentancur for their matchday 10 clash against Crystal Palace. Yves Bissouma and Pape Mata Sarr have been a solid pairing at the base of Spurs’ midfield. Still, the Uruguayan owns the role amongst the Lilywhites, and his availability determines who plays in the midfield. He is confident to start against City, who will also be lining up with their best midfield. Destiny Udogie is also back to full fitness and is expected to be included in the matchday squad.
Lineups
Pep Guardiola will send out a strong XI to meet Tottenham Hotspur on December 3, 2023, in the matchday 14 Manchester City vs Tottenham Hotspur clash in the 2023/24 Premier League season. A return to his famous 4-3-3 is expected as Postecoglou is a coach who lines up his side in a 4-2-3-1 set-up. The left-back role is tricky because the Spaniard needs a dedicated player. In attack, Julian Alvarez will start alongside Erling Haaland as the Argentine has made himself indispensable, Jeremy Doku and his chaos will hold on to the other wing as Guardiola seeks to keep all three points in Manchester.
Manchester City: Ederson; Walker, Dias, Gvardiol, Lewis; Kovacic, Rodri, Silva; Doku, Haaland, Alvarez.
Spurs have played their best hand from the beginning of the season until now. Against Manchester City, things will be no different. The issue, however, is who will be sacrificed for Bentancur in the middle of the park. All indices point to Bissouma, who the Uruguayan replaced on his return to action. A return for Udogie is also on the cards for the starting lineup to face Manchester City at the Etihad.
Tottenham Hotspur: Vicario; Udogie, Van de Ven, Romero, Porro; Bentancur, Mata Sarr; Richarlison, Maddison, Kulusevski; Son.
Prediction
The last five Manchester City vs Tottenham Hotspur Premier League fixtures, have ended in three defeats for Manchester City and two for Spurs. City's wins have both come at home, but one of their defeats in this time also came at home, on 19 February 2022, when Spurs, under Antonio Conte, beat City at the Etihad. City went on to win the Premier League that season, but the defeat was a morale dampener for the champions.
Guardiola will be wary about how Spurs can affect his title chances and will not go soft on them when they come visiting. Every key player is back to full fitness for Postecoglou, making the match very interesting. The impending midfield battles between Rodrigo Bentancur and Rodri will be a crucial discussion point after the game. The wings are where the game will be won, and City fans could see Kyle Walker and whoever Guardiola puts on the left work the hardest to handle Son, Richarlison, and Dejan Kulusevski. Jeremy Doku will also be a menace down his flank for City and create a lot of danger. However, a Manchester City win or draw is the best outcome of this tie.
Manchester City 2 - 1 Tottenham Hotspur.
