Stoke vs Tottenham Hotspur Predictions & Betting Tips, Match Previews

Stoke have had a pretty poor start to the Premier League campaign and still look to be in recovery following their late collapse last term. A six match winless streak saw them miss out on the chance to claim their best ever Premier League finish, and they began the new term by failing to beat the newly promoted Middlesbrough.

They followed this 1-1 draw with a late collapse against Manchester City, losing 4-1 at home in what used to be a formidable home ground. They did manage to boost their confidence with a 4-0 thrashing of Stevenage in the League Cup, but it didn’t help them at the weekend as they lost 1-0 in a drab performance at Everton.

This sparked them into action on transfer deadline day as they sealed deals for the likes of Bruno Martins Indi and Wilfried Bony. Bony in particular could be a huge asset to them if he can rediscover his Swansea form. His pace and power suits the Premier League perfectly and with the creativity of Xherdan Shaqiri behind him he could be lethal. It may take a while for him to gel into the team though.

Tottenham Hotspur haven’t shown many signs of competing at the top of the Premier League again so far this term. They opened the new season with a 1-1 draw at Everton and then got a rather uninspiring 1-0 win at home to Crystal Palace. A 1-1 draw at home to Liverpool followed, and this is before the tiresome Champions League has even begun for them.

Their campaign in Europe’s elite competition begins on Tuesday with a home match against Monaco, and with Bayer Leverkusen and CSKA Moscow also in their group, I wouldn’t imagine there will be many opportunities to rest key players in the Champions League. This is expected to put a big strain on their Premier League campaign, so they would’ve been hoping to get some significant early points under their belts.

Spurs have bolstered their squad in the summer in preparation for the fixture congestion, and whilst it might help with tiredness, I don’t expect the likes of Moussa Sissoko, Georges Kevin Nkoudou, or Paul Lopez to be game changers in terms of their ability to challenge at the top.

Neither of these two teams have looked particularly convincing so far this season and with Stoke, who have the home advantage, I’m expecting this to be quite a close match. Three of Spurs’ last five away days in the Premier League have ended as draws, whilst Stoke have drawn two of their last five at home. This makes odds of 13/5 for a Draw on Saturday look very good value for money. That’s what I’m backing along with a 1-1 correct score prediction at 6/1.