Matthew O’Regan backs an away win to ease the pressure on Ange Postecoglou as part of his Southampton vs Tottenham bet builder.
19:00 Sunday
Here’s more on each part of Matthew’s bet builder tips for Sunday evening. At the time of publishing it was 12/1 on BetMGM.
BetMGM UK
Tottenham Win
Ange Postecoglou is facing scrutiny after a tough run of results that has seen Tottenham win just once in their last eight games. The Aussie has issued a rallying call ahead of their next five games, claiming that these matches will define their season.
The Tottenham faithful will be confident of a win against a Southampton side who are bottom of the league on five points – eight points adrift from safety.
Russell Martin has been lambasted for his stubbornness in sticking with his possession football, with The Saints topping the league for individual errors leading to goals. Their only win this season came in a 1-0 victory over fellow strugglers Everton, with Martin’s side beaten by all the big six so far.
Both Teams To Score
While Southampton failed to score in their opening two home games, they have now scored in their last five, including in the 1-5 loss to Chelsea and the 2-3 loss to Liverpool. Tottenham have seen BTTS land in eight of their last 10, with their games in the league averaging 3.33 goals.
An added caveat to this bet is Tottenham’s injury issues. Centre-back duo Christian Romero and Micky Van de Ven are missing, meaning Archie Gray and Radu Dragusin should play at the heart of the defence again despite struggling against Rangers. Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario is also injured, so Southampton will fancy their chances of getting on the scoresheet.
Mateus Fernandes Over 1.5 Fouls
Mateus Fernandes has been a rare bright spark in an otherwise dismal season for the Saints. The 20-year-old, alongside academy graduate Tyler Dibling, have shone.
Signed from Sporting Lisbon in the summer, Fernandes averages 1.53 fouls per 90 in the league. The Portuguese youth international committed 2.05 fouls per 90 in the Liga Portugal last year. He will have to contend with James Maddison, who wins 3.16 fouls per 90, and Dejan Kulusevski and Pape Matar Sarr, who win 1.41 and 1.69, respectively.
Flynn Downes to be Carded
After picking up his fifth yellow card of the season in the shock 1-1 draw away at Brighton, Flynn Downes was suspended for the drubbing by Chelsea. He was reinstated into the midfield in the 1-0 loss at Aston Villa, making four fouls and receiving a yellow card.
This season, the 25-year-old has made an average of 2.23 fouls per 90 minutes, picking up 0.48 cards per 90 minutes in the process. As with Fernandes, Downes will have to deal with an attack-minded Tottenham midfield, so he may see himself in the referee’s notebook for the seventh time this season.
