Stoke City vs. Tottenham Hotspur and Pick to Win
Date:Sunday, February 26, 2017
Where: English Premier League White Hart Lane London, UK
by Keith, Professional Soccer/Football Handicapper, Predictem
Match Odds: Stoke City 9/1, Tottenham Hotspur 2/5, Draw 43/10
Moneyline: Stoke City +900, Tottenham Hotspur -250, Draw +430
Over/Under Best Market: UNDER 2.5 +21/20 (+105)
The Potters of Stoke City and Tottenham Hotspur will square off at White Hart Lane in what will be a pivotal clash of two English Premier League clubs vying for position in the top ten of the EPL table. These two teams have both been consistently battling for position in the English Premier League table. For Tottenham, they sit in third behind table topper Chelsea and projected runner-up Manchester City with 50 points. The Spurs are just ten points back and certainly need a win here to keep pace with the Blues and author any chance of a late campaign rally. The collision will take place on a primetime Sunday night contest where the Midlands and North London will meet with all eyes on the two participants. Both teams enter off wins and come in on a high note.
For Tottenham, this is an ample opportunity for victory as it would keep them within range of table-topper Chelsea. A loss or a draw here can hinder their prospects but nonetheless, this team currently sits in the zone for European qualification. For Tottenham this would have to be garnered as a success as it would be their second consecutive trip to continental tournament play if they were successful. Both Tottenham and Stoke City have the firepower to open this one up to a shootout. Most notably, the Spurs have the likes of Harry Kane in their wings and he led the English Premier League in goals in the 2015-16 campaign.
Stoke City has the full propensity to be a problem for any team that dare over look them. Just ask Manchester United who walked in to The Potteries at Britannia Stadium expecting a win only to see it deteriorate on the heels of a tenacious effort from Stoke City. Stoke would repeat this again when they traveled to Old Trafford to face off with the Red Devils in the second chapter. The Potters have weapons and most notably a man named Shaquiri. The forward is nothing less than a game changer, as he has the ability to strike from the top of the sixteen or beat defenders one-on-one. The fact remains, the Potters are middling in the thick of the table as they are 16 points out of Europa qualification. With this being said, many wonder what motivation levels will look like for this club. Usually when teams like Stoke come in under the radar they are typically most dangerous. Contrary to many perspectives, entering a hostile environment like White Hart Lane will not be anything daunting for the team from Staffordshire.
Once again after looking at the numbers, seeing how the public has reacted and which the money has gone, the draw has the most value. First and foremost, from a contrarian angle, the minority is on the draw. Either the consensus has played heavily Tottenham with a perceived home pitch advantage or they have gone the other way with the lofty take back affixed to Stoke City. We will never advocate laying this kind of juice, so Tottenham is already out. Be that this contest is a primetime match with no other matches occurring, the markets are likely to be extra sharp and thus the giveaway on Stoke is no mistake by any means. Chances are the books wont expose themselves to a Stoke victory like this if they believed this was actually a strong possibility. Additionally, in Over/Under markets though many expect a shootout, it would safe to assume that the scoring can be capped at two goals. Stoke has had some days where they were blanked and contrarily Tottenhams offense can be quite anemic at times. Nevertheless, a 1-1 or 0-0 draw is still quite feasible. Ultimately, we stand to risk two units to bank 5.35 units back on a draw between both parties along with minimal scoring.
Stoke City Recent Form
W Crystal Palace 1-0
L West Bromwich Albion 0-1
D Everton 1-1
D Manchester United 1-1
W Sunderland 3-1
Tottenham Hotspur Recent Form
W Fulham 3-0
L AA Gent 0-1
L Liverpool 0-2
W Middlesborough 1-0
D Sunderland 0-0
Keith’s Prediction for the Game: DRAW 43/10 (+430) and UNDER 2.5 21/20 (+105)