Reeling from their first negative result in Europe this season, Tottenham Hotspur seek an immediate return to triumphant ways at home to Ipswich Town on Sunday afternoon in the Premier League.
Ange Postecoglou oversaw a 3-2 Europa League loss to Galatasaray during the week, while the Tractor Boys were cruelly denied their first win of the season in a 1-1 draw with Leicester City.
Match preview
© Imago
Nine points from nine available did not become 12 from 12 for Tottenham on Thursday evening, as Postecoglou's rotated side were subjected to a barrage of attacks from a relentless Galatasaray unit and deservedly travelled back from Turkey with nothing to show for their efforts.
However, the Lilywhites came out on the correct end of a five-goal scoreline in their most recent Premier League affair, fighting back from a goal down to decimate Aston Villa 4-1 in North London, where Dominic Solanke stole the show with two strikes as James Maddison and Brennan Johnson also got in on the act.
While that emphatic success boosted Spurs' continental prospects for 2025-26, the Lilywhites are still far from where they aspire to be in the top-flight standings, currently residing in seventh place with a two-point gap to make up to all of Chelsea, Arsenal and Aston Villa.
Spurs are safe in the knowledge that at least one of Chelsea or Arsenal will drop points in Sunday's headline act, and the thrashing of Villa extended a marvellous home sequence for Postecoglou's team, who have won each of their last six at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
In that time, Tottenham have demonstrated their renewed commitment to free-flowing attacking football by scoring at least three times against Brentford, West Ham United and Aston Villa, despite conceding the first goal in every single one of those matches.
© Imago
Tottenham could now become the first-ever Premier League team to win four consecutive home games after going behind in each of them, and upcoming foes Ipswich have recent when it comes to failing to hang onto slender leads in the top flight.
Kieran McKenna's men were mere seconds away from making it 10th time lucky in the top flight last weekend, where Leif Davis's exquisite volley preceded Cameron Burgess's heroic goal-line block from Jordan Ayew, but the Foxes forward was not to be denied again as he broke Tractor Boys' hearts deep into injury time.
Now just one of two teams in the Premier League still winless after 10 matches in 2024-25 - sharing that fate with basement boys Wolverhampton Wanderers - the newly-promoted visitors sit 18th but are within one victory of safety thanks to their quintet of draws.
Sunday's clash will also be the third London trip on the spin for Ipswich, who conceded four goals to West Ham and Brentford in their last two unsuccessful visits to the English capital, but not since 1964 have they let in four or more goals in three straight top-flight away matches.
The head-to-head record also favours the side from Suffolk, who have beaten Spurs in each of their last three Premier League matches, but their last competitive battle came all the way back in the 2001-02 campaign; Tottenham eased to a 3-0 friendly win in the summer of 2020.
Team News
© Imago
Tottenham's thumping of Villa last weekend came at a significant cost, as Richarlison pulled his hamstring while setting up Solanke's goal and is expected to be out until December, while Cristian Romero hurt his toe and had to come off as well.
Postecoglou has not ruled Romero out of Sunday's game just yet, though, while Timo Werner (groin), Djed Spence (groin) and Mikey Moore (illness) are also on the touch-and-go list, but Wilson Odobert (hamstring) and Micky van de Ven (hamstring) are definitely out.
Will Lankshear's red card in Europe also means nothing for the Premier League, but £65m man Solanke is sure to return to the attacking trident; no Premier League player has applied more pressures than his 212 in the final third this season.
However, Kalvin Phillips's sending-off against Leicester for two bookable offences means that the Manchester City loanee will have to sit out Sunday's game through suspension; Jens Cajuste and Massimo Luongo are scrapping it out to deputise for him.
Defender Harry Clarke is leaving the naughty step after serving his own suspension, though, while Chiedozie Ogbene (Achilles), Axel Tuanzebe (hand), Jacob Greaves (thigh), Jack Taylor (unspecified) and Janoi Donacien (ankle) will miss out through injury.
A product of the Tottenham Hotspur academy ranks for three seasons, attacker Jack Clarke is at the head of the queue for promotion from the Ipswich bench this weekend, where he could very well replace Sammie Szmodics or Conor Chaplin to face his former employers.
Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:
Vicario; Porro, Romero, Dragusin, Udogie; Kulusevski, Bentancur, Sarr; Johnson, Solanke, Son
Ipswich Town possible starting lineup:
Muric; Johnson, O'Shea, Burgess, Davis; Morsy, Cajuste; Hutchinson, Chaplin, Clarke; Delap
We say: Tottenham Hotspur 4-1 Ipswich Town
McKenna's men almost always carry a threat in the final third and can ask questions of a Spurs backline that is far from watertight, but the hosts' quality at the other end of the pitch should tell eventually.
A repeat of last weekend's 4-1 crushing of Villa is not beyond the realm of possibility, and Ipswich's excruciating wait for their first success of the season will surely go on.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
