Can Spurs end Burnley's impressive unbeaten run?
Spurs are not going to give up on the Premier League title race without a fight. Victory over Burnley on Saturday would take them within two points of Manchester City and the Premier League summit; that is until Liverpool head to Old Trafford on Sunday…
But this Burnley side are proving rather hard to beat these days: Sean Dyche’s men haven’t tasted defeat in seven Premier League outings – a run which includes a draw against Manchester United – so if Spurs want to keep their title hopes alive, they’ll have to dig very deep indeed.
While the Clarets’ impressive form will perhaps tempt a few punters away from backing Spurs, the emphatic victory over Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League shows Saturday’s visitors are made of sterner stuff than we’re used to, which is why I’m backing them to claim the points.
Mauricio Pochettino’s men have won all-but-two away games this season, and have shown they possess the ability to grind out results – often at the eleventh hour – against sides of Burnley’s ilk.
Harry Kane is likely to return to Spurs’ bench, which is poor timing as far as Dyche is concerned, and he may prove the difference on the day – should Spurs require some late magic to undo this resolute Clarets defence.
A Spurs win, priced at 8/11, is my first tip for Saturday’s early kick-off.
Spurs required a 91st minute Christian Eriksen winner to sink Burnley at Wembley back in December, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a little more late drama on Saturday.
Burnley have conceded 14 goals in the last 15 minutes of matches this season – by far their most leaky period – while Spurs have scored after the 80th minute in their last four league outings.
The stats suggest Spurs may have to be patient in order to finally put Burnley to bed, and it’s an outcome I’m certainly leading towards.
With this in mind, I’m backing the last goal of the match to be scored between 74 minutes and full-time, priced at evens.
My final tip features Spurs’ super Dane; I’m backing Eriksen to register two or more shots on target, priced at a sultry 7/4.
Burney are a side who sit back and aren’t afraid to offer sides shooting opportunities, especially from distance – which is very much Eriksen territory. The 27-year-old has registered two shots on target in Spurs’ last couple of matches, and he’s a good price to do so once again.
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