Tottenham Hotspur host Manchester City at White Hart Lane on Saturday aiming for a third successive Premier League win following a resurgence in recent weeks.
However, the Lilywhites will come up against a wounded City side after the top-of-the-table Sky Blues suffered a bubble-bursting 2-1 defeat by West Ham United at Eastlands last week.
Tottenham Hotspur
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Having led Spurs to back-to-back Premier League wins, manager Mauricio Pochettino seems to have sparked the turnaround that his side desperately needed following an inauspicious start to the 2015-16 season.
The two-week international break appears to have done wonders for a Tottenham side who quite simply could not win a game in the first four weeks of the campaign.
There were signs of their early-season woes from day one, when Pochettino's side arguably out-played Manchester United for large spells at Old Trafford, but a Kyle Walker own goal was enough to give the hosts victory.
The result hardly reflected the visitors' performance that day, but the Lilywhites continued to shoot themselves in the foot. Seven days later, Tottenham looked on course to beat Stoke City at White Hart Lane, having led 2-0 at the 78-minute mark, but two goals in the final quarter saw the Potters rescue a point.
They dropped points from a losing position again the following week, with Dele Alli's 81st-minute opener at Leicester City being instantly cancelled out by Riyad Mahrez, before Everton held them to a 0-0 draw in North London prior to the international break.
To make matters worse, misfiring striker Harry Kane, who struck 31 times in all competitions last term, continued to struggle in the final third, and few can doubt that his goal-shy form was not linked to his team's winless run. As a result, Spurs had precious little choice but to find ways of scoring without their talisman - who has started all six of their league outings, finishing five of them - and Ryan Mason was the unlikely hero when he hit the winner in the 1-0 win at struggling Sunderland two weeks ago.
Summer signing Son Heung-min took more pressure off the 22-year-old by netting the only goal in last week's 1-0 win at home to Crystal Palace and, all of a sudden, their season looks markedly brighter than it did a fortnight ago.
Their 2-1 home defeat by bitter rivals Arsenal in the League Cup on Wednesday would have hurt, but having made eight changes that night, Pochettino is clearly more concerned with continuing their Premier League resurgence by upsetting Manchester City on Saturday.
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Manchester City
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Manchester City make the trip to Spurs after being slapped with a dose of reality following last Saturday's defeat to the Hammers. It was a result that ended their 100% start to the Premier League season, having won all five of their previous outings.
It was a result which also proved that goals are not guaranteed for their star-studded attack. New boys Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne, who cost a combined £103m, lined up behind Sergio Aguero and alongside the powerful Yaya Toure, but the visiting defence was more than a match for them as they survived a 45-minute onslaught.
Defeat was made all the more surprising given the rip-roaring way in which Manuel Pellegrini's side had begun the 2015-16 season.
Back-to-back 3-0 victories away to West Bromwich Albion and home to Premier League champions Chelsea in the first two games certainly gave rise to suggestions that the Citizens could prove far more of a threat to the Blues this time around, having finished nine points behind them in second last term.
Aleksandar Kolarov and Samir Nasri then struck in the final half-hour as City dug deep to beat Everton 2-0 at Goodison Park, before £49m man Sterling opened his account at the club with a victory over Watford by the same scoreline.
There were perhaps signs that their early-season momentum was faltering somewhat when the Sky Blues needed a 90th-minute winner from 18-year-old striker Kelechi Iheanacho to beat Crystal Palace 1-0 at Selhurst Park after the international break, before a 2-1 Champions League defeat at home to Juventus brought them back to earth.
Despite the setback with the Irons, City remain eight points clear of champions Chelsea, and Pellegrini will be desperate to preserve that advantage for as long as possible. Victory in North London would be a good start.
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Team News
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Mason, Moussa Dembele and Nabil Bentaleb are all sidelined for the visit of Man City. As a result, Alli is expected to continue in midfield, along with Eric Dier.
Kane will spearhead the attack again despite his low-profile start to the season, while Son, who has three goals under his belt already, will support.
There is good news for the visitors in the form of captain Vincent Kompany's return, with the defender missing out last week through injury.
David Silva, who also missed the visit of West Ham after falling injured in the warm-up, remains absent, with Jesus Navas scheduled to deputise once more.
Nasri and Pablo Zabaleta are also expected to return to the squad, but Bacary Sagna could continue at right-back regardless.
Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:
Lloris; Walker, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Davies; Alli, Dier; Lamela, Son, Chadli; Kane
Manchester City possible starting lineup:
Hart; Sagna, Kompany, Otamendi, Kolarov; Fernandinho, Toure; Sterling, De Bruyne, Navas; Aguero
Head To Head
Ominously from a Tottenham perspective, this has been a fixture that Manchester City have dominated in recent years. They have won seven of the last eight meetings home and away, with a 3-1 Spurs win at White Hart Lane in 2013 being the only exception. Furthermore, the Citizens have scored no fewer than 16 goals in their last four meetings with the Lilywhites.
We say: Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Manchester City
Despite Spurs' mini resurgence of recent weeks, City have more than enough quality at their disposal to inflict back-to-back home defeats on Saturday's hosts. It will not be easy, but we reckon that Pellegrini and co will get their league season back on track and put their West Ham disappointments to one side.
Shane Callaghan
