Will we see revenge in the bouts between North London and Manchester?
Of course, we don’t mean true revenge. For that would necessitate reversals of the routs we saw at Old Trafford and White Hart Lane earlier in the season. Indeed, it’s a measure of how difficult the tasks are for both Tottenham and Arsenal that even the vindication of mere victories appears almost as unlikely.
There are a number of reasons for that.
For a start, this is the truest test of Tottenham’s title credentials so far this season. And, while you can discount the early defeats to the Manchester clubs to a certain degree, the manner in which Spurs struggled at home to Chelsea is a concern in terms of their ability to compete with the elite clubs beyond racking up runs.
And is if that psychological factor wasn’t enough of an obstacle to scale, there’s also the statistical: City have won every single home game this season. While Roberto Mancini’s side may not be as magnificent as they were earlier in the season (more of that in a moment), it’s hard to look past them rigorously and relentlessly going about their job at home: suffocating Tottenham’s vigour before splitting them with the ability of either Sergio Aguuro or David Silva.
Either way – despite Harry Redknapp’s protestations that a defeat will mean little – the eventual result will tell us a lot about where Tottenham are.
Arsenal’s challenge doesn’t seem as daunting but is just as difficult – if not even more so. Firstly, there’s the very bald fact that Alex Ferguson has clearly had the measure of Arsene Wenger over the past few seasons. Dating back to 2009, United have won seven of their last nine games against Arsenal. And, as if Wenger’s injuries worries weren’t enough to add to that, United have the best away record in the division this year.
Whatever about revenge, simple draws might prove just as satisfying for the North London clubs given the context of recent games.
Have City lost their spark?
Of course, the sheer scale of the early-season scoring was always going to be impossible to maintain. By the 14th game of the season, Mancini’s side looked on course to absolutely smash the English league’s scoring record by scoring well over 100 goals. Silva was sumptuously dissecting defences, Sergio Aguero was drawing them all over the place and Edin Dzeko and Mario Balotelli were sweeping up all of the opportunities they offered.
By the start of December, City had scored 48 goals in 14 games with an average of 3.4 a game. Since then, they’ve only managed nine in seven.
And it’s not just about the stats. It’s also the style.
To be stark, there’s been a lot less of it. Silva, perhaps understandably, has looked much more lethargic in recent games. Finishing has seemingly deserted both Aguero and Dzeko. Balotelli has been missing more than he’s playing.
And the result of all of that is that Mancini has seemingly resorted to his default setting as a manager: safety first.
It was telling against Wigan on Monday that he withdrew an attacker in Samir Nasri for a destroyer in Nigel De Jong in order to contain the game rather than kill it.
Spurs themselves have scored in all of their last 20 games – the most prolific run in the Premier League – and, as such, are likely to offer up a more open game than City usually enjoy at home. Their response to that will be interesting.
