Tottenham are hoping to reach the fifth round of the FA Cup but it won't be easy as the Spurs host Southampton at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London for the replay of their fourth-round clash. The first attempt ended 1-1, Son Heung-Min opened the scoring for Tottenham but then Sofiane Boufal netted the equalizer in the 87th minute. Earlier in January Southampton defeated Tottenham 1-0 at St. Mary's in the Premier League, while the reverse fixture was won 2-1 by Tottenham in September. Overall, the last six direct matches led to two victories apiece and two draws.
Tottenham are now undefeated in their last five matches in all competitions and last weekend they recorded a great result in the Premier League, a 2-0 home victory over defending champions Manchester City. Advancing to the fifth round of the FA Cup should be quite important for the Spurs, but considering that they are still in the UEFA Champions League, fighting on three fronts might cause some problems as well. New signing Steven Bergwijn scored on his debut last weekend but is not eligible to play in the FA Cup match because he was signed after the match at St. Mary's. Harry Kane, Ben Davies and Moussa Sissoko remain sidelined for the home side, while Dele Alli is an injury doubt.
Southampton had a great run of results during the final days of December and first couple of weeks in January, with six wins and a draw in all competitions. Their run suffered a couple of setbacks in the past few weeks, a 3-2 defeat at home against Wolves and a 4-0 drubbing at league leaders Liverpool last weekend, but the Saints are still a significant threat for Tottenham. Their relegation worries have eased and a good run in the FA Cup would definitely do the club proud, so manager Ralph Hasenhuttl will surely motivate his players to cause an upset in London. Stuart Armstrong and Yan Valery are the only injury-motivated absences for the visitors.
Probable line-ups:
Tottenham: Lloris - Aurier, Alderweireld, Sanchez, Tanganga - Gedson Fernandes, Dier, Ndombele - Lamela, Moura, Sessegnon
Southampton: Gunn - Danso, Bednarek, Stephens, Bertrand - Djenepo, Romeu, Ward-Prowse, Redmond - Ings, Adams
My prediction:
Tottenham should be full of confidence following their victory over Manchester City last weekend, but that might lead to complacency as well. Southampton have been solid lately and I think they can push this one into extra time, I think the opening 90 minutes will end 1-1.
Here are the odds for this match at NetBet:
Tottenham win - 1.73
Draw - 3.80
Southampton win - 5.00
sharpe
4 years ago
It's been quite an entertaining a game this Fa Cup replay. I thought the Saints are the better team on the field fist half but literally with their first dangerous attack Tottenham got the lead. Second half has been even more exiting and Southampton should really regret they've lost that one in the regular time, but the...
It's been quite an entertaining a game this Fa Cup replay. I thought the Saints are the better team on the field fist half but literally with their first dangerous attack Tottenham got the lead. Second half has been even more exiting and Southampton should really regret they've lost that one in the regular time, but the Mourinho pragmatism has proved to be successful again even though in a game which the Spurs side should of probably loose.
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