Tottenham Hotspur will make the trip up to Manchester hoping to bounce back from two defeats in a row. The first of the two came at the hands of Galatasaray with the Turkish side handing Spurs a 3-2 defeat, their first loss in the Europa League this season.
Three days later Spurs hosted newly promoted Ipswich Town at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Tottenham found themselves 2-0 down at half-time after goals from Sammie Szmodics and Liam Delap, a second-half header from Rodrigo Bentancur wasn’t enough to save Spurs as they handed Ipswich their first win of the season.
It isn’t just Ange Postecoglou’s men who head into this match off the back of poor form, with Manchester City racking up four losses in a row – their worst run of results since 2006. The first of the four coming at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with Spurs winning 2-1 in the Carabao Cup clash.
Pep Guardiola’s side then travelled to Bournemouth where they lost 2-1 before jetting off to Portugal where they faced Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League – losing 4-1 thanks to a Victor Gyokeres hat-trick. The most recent defeat saw City travel down to Brighton where they once again lost 2-1, with goals coming from Joao Pedroand Matt O’Riley.
-
Team News
The Cityzens are plagued by injuries, with many of their first choice starters side-lined for the near future. Attackers Phil Foden, Jack Grealish and Jeremy Doku all withdrew from their respective national team camps during the most recent international break. Foden is set to possibly play a role against Spurs after picking up a knock against Brighton but the same can’t be said about Grealish and Doku, whose return dates are unknown at this time.
Defenders John Stones, Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias and Nathan Ake are all doubts ahead of the Spurs clash too. Both Stones and Dias haven’t played any part for the Cityzens since their 2-1 loss to Tottenham in the Carabao Cup last month.
Midfielder Matheus Nunes withdrew from the Portuguese squad during the international break - something that may worry Guardiola as City’s midfield options are sparse after Balon D’Or winner Rodri was ruled out for the season.
Like Manchester City, Spurs also have defensive injuries with both first choice centre-backs Cristian Romero and Micky Van de Ven unlikely to be fit to face the current Premier League holders. Romero came off at half-time during Argentina’s 2-1 defeat to Paraguay in a 2026 World Cup qualifier. Van de Ven is back in training but Postecoglou revealed that the Dutchman is still “a couple of weeks away.”
Uruguayan midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur is unavailable for selection after he was handed a hefty seven-match ban from the FA after comments he made towards Spurs teammate Heung-Min Son in an interview back in June.
Forwards Richarlison and Wilson Odobert are also unavailable with both suffering hamstring issues. 17-year-old Mikey Moore missed Spurs’ Europa League clash against Galatasaray and the following game against Ipswich due to illness and it is unknown whether he will play a part against Manchester City.
-
Likely Lineups
Manchester City (3-2-4-1)
Ederson; Walker, Simpson-Pusey, Gvardiol; Kovacic, Lewis; B. Silva, De Bruyne, Gundogan, Savinho; Haaland
Tottenham Hotspur (4-3-3)
Vicario; Porro, Dragusin, Davies, Udogie; Sarr, Bissouma, Kulusevski; Johnson, Solanke, Son
-
Key Players
Manchester City – Erling Haaland
The Norwegian striker doesn’t need much introduction. He is a goal machine. Haaland has racked up 75 goals and 13 assists in just 77 Premier League games since he joined Manchester City in the summer of 2022.
Haaland’s goalscoring prowess combined with Spurs’ weakened defence could prove a huge problem for the North London side. City’s number nine has scored three in his four Premier League appearances against Tottenham, showing that he is and will be a handful for the Lilywhites.
Tottenham Hotspur – Dejan Kulusevski
Kulusevski has completely transformed his game this season since Postecoglou has deployed him in the number 10 role. The Swedish international is the heartbeat of this Spurs team, creating and scoring goals, taking players on with his incredible dribbling and tracking back with his tireless work rate.
Kulusevski also has a great record playing at the Etihad, with three goals and two assists in just the three games he has played there. Spurs’ official X account (@SpursOfficial) jokingly made a post labelling the Etihad ‘The Dekihad’ – Deki being Kulusevski’s nickname at Tottenham.
-
Match Details
Where is the match being played?
The match is being held at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester.
What time is kick-off?
Manchester City v Tottenham Hotspur kicks off at 17:30 GMT on Saturday, 23 November.
How to watch?
You can watch the match live on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League with coverage starting at 17:00 BST.
