For the second time in the space of two gameweeks, Tottenham Hotspur welcome a team from the South Coast to North London, as Bournemouth lie in wait for Saturday afternoon's Premier League contest.
The Lilywhites somehow scraped past Brighton & Hove Albion in a chaotic 2-1 win last weekend, while Gary O'Neil's men came away from the King Power Stadium with a 1-0 triumph over Leicester City.
Match preview
© Reuters
An early fracas between Cristian Stellini and Roberto De Zerbi - apparently for something that the former said during a press conference - set the tone for Spurs' clash with fellow European hopefuls Brighton, and on-field tensions soon spilled over onto both benches during an all-out melee.
A few seconds after De Zerbi had been banished from the touchline, Stellini - who completely ignored the skirmishes going on around him - cut an aghast figure as he was also given a red card, with both teams seeing out the remainder of the match without their managers barking instructions from their technical areas.
Even the most ardent of Tottenham fans can acknowledge the good fortune their side were blessed with against Brighton, as Son Heung-min and Harry Kane's strikes either side of a Lewis Dunk header propelled Spurs to a gritty win, but the Seagulls had two goals disallowed and have received an apology from the PGMOL after Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg's stamp on Kaoru Mitoma inside the area went unpunished.
With just eight games left to go this season, though, an ugly win is far more preferable to a valiant defeat, and fifth-placed Spurs remain just three points worse off than Newcastle United and Manchester United, although their northerly counterparts still boast a game in hand.
Seeking to stretch their unbeaten run across all competitions to six matches, Spurs have also claimed five victories from their last five Premier League home contests - no side has earned more points on their own patch since the start of February - but recent defensive frailties are waiting to be exposed by an attack-minded Bournemouth.
© Reuters
Putting money on James Maddison to set up a goal in Leicester's clash with Bournemouth could have been a worthwhile bet for many punters, but unfortunately for the England international, his assist last weekend came at the wrong end of the field.
Maddison's shoddy backpass handed Philip Billing his seventh goal of the season on a plate, and how Bournemouth only scored once at the King Power is anybody's guess, with Leicester's beleaguered defence coming under wave after wave of Cherries attacks.
While admitting that his side need to display a more ruthless streak in front of goal, O'Neil was overwhelmingly satisfied with a third win from five Premier League games, which keeps Bournemouth three points clear of the dotted line in 15th place.
Such is the volatile nature of the relegation battle that Bournemouth could be dragged back into the bottom three with a dissatisfactory result this weekend, and not since the 2018-19 campaign have the Cherries won back-to-back Premier League showdowns on the road.
During the short-lived Antonio Conte era, Spurs came from 2-0 down to beat Bournemouth 3-2 in a South Coast classic back in October - winning in strikingly similar fashion to Arsenal's last-gasp Emirates win over the Cherries - and all five of Tottenham's previous Premier League home games versus Bournemouth have ended in victory.
Team News
© Reuters
It is as you were in the Tottenham treatment room right now, with Rodrigo Bentancur (knee), Emerson Royal (knee), Ryan Sessegnon (hamstring), Ben Davies (hamstring) and Yves Bissouma (ankle) all out of contention.
Lucas Moura must also serve the second of a three-game ban following his sending-off at Everton, but the Brazilian would have had little chance of forcing his way into the XI over Dejan Kulusevski or Son, who became the first Asian player to score 100 Premier League goals with his beauty against Brighton.
Tottenham have been charged by the FA over last weekend's touchline melee, but Stellini will be on the touchline this weekend as he awaits to hear the outcome of the investigation.
Meanwhile, Bournemouth boss O'Neil is hopeful over the fitness of Marcos Senesi (thigh), but Hamed Traore (ankle), Ryan Fredericks (calf) and Junior Stanislas remain unavailable.
Dango Ouattara was taken off with just 38 minutes on the clock against Leicester, but the former Lorient man's withdrawal was believed to have been a tactical switch due to his underwhelming display.
Ouattara could therefore be given the chance to redeem himself out wide here, but Marcus Tavernier is waiting in the wings as he endeavours to force his way back into the starting lineup, while exiled left-back Jordan Zemura will join Udinese on a free transfer this summer.
Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:
Lloris; Romero, Dier, Lenglet; Porro, Hojbjerg, Skipp, Perisic; Kulusevski, Kane, Son
Bournemouth possible starting lineup:
Neto; Smith, Mepham, Stephens, Kelly; Lerma, Rothwell; Ouattara, Billing, Tavernier; Solanke
We say: Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 Bournemouth
With Bournemouth showing plenty of attacking eminence in recent gameweeks, Saturday's game has the potential to be another banana skin for Tottenham, who were extremely fortunate to come away with all three points versus Brighton.
However, the Lilywhites possess the recipe for success on their own patch - albeit while not always producing an exciting, free-flowing display - and Stellini should witness his side clinch a hard-fought win from the naughty step.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
