Tottenham Hotspur vs Red Star Belgrade Predictions

Mauricio Pochettino is coming under increasing pressure at Tottenham Hotspur, and their dismal 1-1 draw at home to Watford on Saturday will have done him few favours as they slumped to their third consecutive winless game.

In fact, the only thing keeping him in employment right now is probably Spurs’ fantastic run to the Champions League Final last season, but a repeat of that feat looks about as far-fetched as possible right now. Their humiliating 7-2 loss at home to Bayern Munich was a dark day in the club’s history, and it leaves them level with Olympiakos at the bottom of Group B.

This is a chance for partial redemption though. They may have only won three competitive matches all season, but they have scored 19 goals in these 12 games and face a Red Star Belgrade side that haven’t exactly been defensively sound since returning to Europe’s big stage.

The Serbians did manage a 3-1 win over Olympiakos last time out, and in fairness to them their home form isn’t bad at all. They shocked Liverpool with a 2-0 win in Belgrade last season, and their only home defeat in the competition since 2006 came against PSG last term.

However, away from home it’s a different story entirely. They were beaten 3-0 by Bayern Munich earlier this season, and their group outings last term saw them ship 13 goals in just three games. Even when qualifying matches are taken into consideration they haven’t won a Champions League match on the road since the start of August last year.

We’re expecting Tottenham to take advantage of their decidedly shaky back line on Tuesday. Despite their poor start, Spurs have still managed to score four goals in their two Champions League outings this season.

In all competitions they have averaged 2 goals per game this season, and Red Star Belgrade have conceded at least three goals in each of their last four group games. They have conceded an average of 4 goals per game in these group trips, so we think a bet of Tottenham Over 2.5 Team Goals looks excellent value.

Spurs’ defence isn’t up to scratch though. They have kept just two clean sheets in 12 competitive matches this term and have already conceded a massive nine goals in the Champions League. Meanwhile Red Star Belgrade have scored in five of their last eight Champions League group matches, so we think a 3-1 correct score prediction is the way to go.