Tottenham v Leeds United – Preview, Predictions and Best Bets

Tottenham host Leeds in the Premier League at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday evening. The match pits serial winner Antonio Conte against Marcelo Bielsa for the first time and should make for fascinating content. Spurs have won four in a row at home against Leeds and will want to kickstart their season under their new coach. Leeds is struggling this term so far and are just three points above the drop zone.

Tottenham Form

Spurs have had a poor season up to this point. Nuno Espirito Santo was fired on the back of some terrible results and performances. A 3-0 loss to each of Crystal Palace and Chelsea and a 3-1 defeat at Arsenal came before consecutive wins and then a 1-0 loss at West Ham and a 3-0 home thrashing by Man Utd.

Antonio Conte has overseen two matches so far, winning 3-2 against Vitesse in the Europa League before a dull, but solid, 0-0 draw away at Everton.

Tottenham Team News

Antonio Conte is definitely without two of his expected starters for this match. Oliver Skipp is suspended in midfield is accruing five yellow cards whilst center-back Cristian Romero was injured on Argentina duty.

Harry Winks or Tanguy Ndomdele will replace Skipp in midfield whilst Davinson Sánchez should come into the back three. Giovani Lo Celso is pushing to start in place of Lucas Moura in the front three.

Tottenham Motivation

Spurs need a win. Conte will want to see his training patterns and style of play come to the fore in the performance but the result is much more important.

A draw would be seen as a poor result so expect Spurs to get extra attackers onto the pitch if the score is level in the second half.

Leeds Form

Having ended last season with seven wins in their final 10 league matches, Leeds has struggled this year. They sit 15th in the table and are just three points above the drop zone. Their first six matches saw three losses and three draws, including a 5-1 thrashing at Man Utd and a comprehensive 3-0 home loss to Liverpool.

Things have improved since then with eight points from their last five games. A 1-0 home win against Watford and a 2-1 win at Norwich in that run have improved confidence. Their last match saw a solid defensive performance to draw 1-1 at home with Leicester.

Leeds Team News

Bielsa’s squad is looking very stretched and very thin. The coach has been without right-back Luke Ayling and last season’s top scorer Patrick Bamford but both are getting close to returning. It is possible that one or both could be substitutes at Spurs.

Left-back Junior Firpo is another on the verge of coming back from injury but center-back Robin Koch is out for a while yet. Rodrigo is set to cover for Bamford upfront whilst Bielsa could go with a back three, using Stuart Dallas to plug gaps whilst Adam Forshaw could start in midfield.

Leeds Motivation

Leeds has been more circumspect in many of their recent matches against the big six. They kept clean sheets against Chelsea and Man Utd last season and are capable of defending solidly.

A draw would be a decent result and one Bielsa would likely accept in their league position. His side has netted just 11 goals in 11 matches and is not expected to be as dangerous as last season.

Key Stats

Spurs have won their last 4 home PL matches against Leeds

Spurs have won 9 of their last 13 home PL matches (L4)

THFC have kept 4 clean sheets in their last 8 home games in the PL

Leeds have netted 11 goals in 11 PL matches (4th fewest in the PL)

Leeds have conceded in their last 5 away PL matches

Verdict

Considering Leeds’ trouble in front of goal and their poor record at Spurs, this looks like a very good chance for Antonio Conte to pick up a win. A victory to nil looks like excellent value.