Text here to move the logos across. please log in to view this image please log in to view this image Hello and welcome to the official match thread for Wednesday’s Barclays Premier League encounter between Tottenham Hotspur & Liverpool. The game is scheduled to be played at White Hart Lane on Wednesday 28th November 2012 with a kick-off time of 7.45PM. The game isn’t scheduled to be shown on English T.V but streams showing the game are normally posted before & during the game. talkSPORT have the radio commentary of Wednesday’s game. Preview. Liverpool travel to North London on Wednesday to take on Tottenham Hotspur with this game billed as important for both sides. After a poor run of form, Andre Villas Boas and his Tottenham Hotspur side got a vital victory yesterday as they beat West Ham United 3-1 at White Hart Lane. After three consecutive defeats, Spurs needed a result and they put in a good performance to sweep aside a West Ham side that had started the season very well. This moved Spurs up to 7th place and just 5 points off Chelsea in 4th position. Liverpool also played yesterday as Brendan Rodgers took his Liverpool side to one of his former clubs in Swansea City. The game wasn’t a classic and finished 0-0. It was another point for Liverpool who have become the draw specialists of late. They are on an 8-match unbeaten run but 5 of those games have finished in draws. These draws have meant that Liverpool haven’t been able to get a run of results going and push higher up the table. This is why they sit 11th in the table and are 4 points behind Wednesday’s opponents. The home side, Tottenham Hotspur, will be favourites due to the home advantage and the higher league position. It has been a mixed first 13 games for Andre Villas Boas and Spurs. There have been some good results (A first victory in 23 years at Old Trafford against Manchester United & solid victories over Aston Villa & Southampton) but there have also been disappointing results. (The losses against Wigan Athletic, Manchester City & Arsenal which all followed each other) With Villas Boas only joining in the summer, you can understand the mixed results somewhat. With a new manager & new players, results are unlikely to be consistent at this time of the season. Despite this level of inconsistency, Spurs are only 5 points off Chelsea who currently occupy the final Champions League spot. A victory on Wednesday would go some way to pushing Spurs towards those Champions League places... The big threat from Spurs will come from the wingers. This was the case last season and is the case again this season. When you have Aaron Lennon & Gareth Bale on the wings, you know that this is where the big threat comes from and the Liverpool full-backs will be looking to stop the supply to the lone striker who is likely to be the in-form Jermain Defoe. With Spurs operating a 4-2-3-1 formation, the two wingers are a vital part of the attacking play and in Lennon & Bale, they have two quality players. With Defoe also in top form (7 League goals & 10 in all competitions) their attacking potential is significant. If Lennon & Bale can get the ball to Defoe and create chances, it is very likely that Defeo will take those chances. Liverpool have tightened up at the back in recent games (4 clean sheets in their last 7 league games) but the attacking threat from Spurs will be a big test of Liverpool’s defence. Another Spurs player who will be a big player for them in the returning Moussa Dembele. The midfielder is a vital part of Spurs midfield and the games he has missed due to injury have seen Spurs hit a poor patch of form. His return on Sunday against West Ham United was a massive boost for Spurs and his ability to link the play behind midfield & attack will be a massive asset to Villas Boas and his side. The away side, Liverpool, have also had an inconsistent start to the season. It took 6 games for Brendan Rodgers to secure his first win in the league as Liverpool manager but since that victory (5-2 over Norwich City) they haven’t been beaten and are slowly moving towards the top half of the table. That rise in positions could be put down to Luis Suarez and his form. The striker has been a significant player for Liverpool this season and is currently the Barclays Premier League Top Scorer with 10 goals. He has 13 in all competitions and is a man bang on form. If Liverpool are to get anything out of the game on Wednesday, it would seem very likely that Suarez will be involved. As Liverpool’s only fit & available senior striker, he is the focal point of their attack and is looked at to finish off the chances that he is given. (And finish the ones he creates himself!) However, he hasn’t actually netted against Spurs since he joined the club. To make that stat worse for Liverpool fans, Liverpool haven’t scored against Spurs since Martin Skrtel netted in a 2-1 defeat in Roy Hodgson’s reign as Liverpool manager! That was a long time ago and Liverpool will be looking to end that blank patch on Wednesday... Another key player for Liverpool will be the youngster Raheem Sterling. With the winger expected to play on the right-hand side of Liverpool's three-man attack, he will most likely be up against Jan Vertonghen in the left-back position for Spurs. The Belgian international has been a good signing for Spurs from Ajax but his natural position is centre-back so it could be an opportunity for Sterling to get at a player who isn't in his natural position. However, Vertonghen is an excellent defender so it will be an interesting battle between those two and will be one of the vital battles in this game. So, an interesting game in prospect! Can Andre Villas Boas & his Spurs side start a winning run to push them towards those Champions League places? Or can Brendan Rodgers & Liverpool secure an away win to move themselves up the table? You’ll find out all of this, and more, on the official match thread on the Not606 Liverpool board. Do join in the conversation. (That includes the guests reading! Sign up and get involved.) Injury News. Tottenham Hotspur. Younes Kaboul: Knee Injury. Benoît Assou-Ekotto: Knee Injury. Scott Parker: Achilles Injury. Liverpool. Martin Kelly: ACL Knee Injury. Andre Wisdom: Knee Injury.* Lucas Leiva: Thigh Injury. Fabio Borini: Foot Injury. *Indicates player will have a late fitness test and could be available for Wednesday’s game. Suspension News. Tottenham Hotspur. Tottenham striker Emmanuel Adebayor is serving the second of a three-match ban after his sending-off against Arsenal and is therefore unavailable for Wednesday's game. Liverpool. No suspensions for any Liverpool players. Tottenham Hotspur 2 - 1 Liverpool Goalscorers: Tottenham Hotspur... Aaron Lennon: 7th minute. Tottenham Hotspur... Gareth Bale: 16th minute. Liverpool... Gareth Bale: 72nd minute. (Own Goal) Tottenham Hotspur: Lloris - Walker Gallas Dawson Vertonghen - Sandro Huddlestone - Lennon Sigurdsson Bale - Defoe SUBS: Friedel Naughton Livermore Carroll Dembele Townsend Dempsey - Tottenham Hotspur Substitution: Clint Dempsey comes off to be replaced by Gylfi Sigurdsson. (63rd minute) Tottenham Hotspur Substitution: Mousa Dembele comes off to be replaced by Tom Huddlestone. (88th minute) - Liverpool: Reina - Johnson Skrtel Agger Enrique - Allen Shelvey Gerrard - Sterling Suarez Assaidi SUBS: Jones Wisdom Carragher Sahin Henderson Downing Suso - Liverpool Substitution: Jordan Henderson comes off to be replaced by Jonjo Shelvey. (63rd minute) Liverpool Substitution: Stewart Downing comes off to be replaced by Oussama Assaidi. (78th minute) - YNWA.
I think we can win this one. I felt as though Rodgers had one eye on this game bearing in mind his decisions at Swansea - that won't be an issue this time. Mancini showed that the best way to combat Bale is to pin him back, and I think that no Adebayor is a huge plus for us. I'm much more confident about our defence's chances of keeping a clean sheet if it's just Defoe up front. I feel that we can pick them off on the counter..
I have a bad feeling about this game although that is usually a good thing for Liverpool Football Club...
I think with Rogers in charge you should come to play football which should make for a good game. Both teams with new managers and in transition makes it difficult to predict, but it will not surprise you if I expect Spurs to win. We should have Dembele back which will make a big difference to us and Vertonghen will have a vital job in keeping Suarez locked up. No Adebayor for us which is a serious blow but having said that Defoe is on fire. Here's to a great game!
Question... If Adebayor got suspended for two games last season and one of the two games were against Man City, would that game count towards his suspension considering he wouldn't have been allowed to play against them anyway? (I know this has no relevance but just wondered )
Form suggests a different game depending on whether Dembele and Sandro play. We've been excellent when they've both started, okay but no more with only one playing and poor with both out. The status of both is iffy for the Liverpool game as far as I know. We did look good against West Ham with Dembele only playing a few minutes, so maybe we're learning how to adjust.
We'll tear their defense a new one, but score nothing. 2-0 Spurs. We'll concede two sloppy goals from a corner or defensive ****up.
Can't see us winning sadly, especially if they have dembele playing he will completely overrun our midfield. On a positive note I am a big fan of Enrique on LW, now we need a new left back.
Journos who cover Spurs say Dembele won't start. Thats massive for us if thats what happens. If he starts best we can hope for is a draw, if he doesn't start Suarez can win this for us by himself, especially if Gallas starts. We have a better defence, and with the players we have in midfield should have a better midfield, but, for one reason or another (mainly Gerrards positioning/role) the midfield has been dog **** lately, especially since Allen has hit the skids. Oh and theres a chance Lucas could be back. When he's back match fit he's going to be a difference maker for our season. Instantly our midfield will be a hell of a lot more secure. Spurs and ourselves have been pretty **** this season. I've watched every Spurs game when they haven't played at the same time as us, and compared to the last couple of seasons they are awful so there is defo nothing to be scared of or worried about like last season. The problem for us is were awful too, more mentality wise than actual performance on the field. The usual Liverpool pattern will come into play. If we don't score in the first half, no matter how good we play, it'll be the same as Swansea. Our heads will go down and we'll give up and pass the initiative back to Spurs and stand off them. If we start by playing well, like we can do, like we did in the first half against Swansea, AND we actually get a goal. We'll relax and confidence will increase and a massive weight will be lifted and we'll probably go on to win comfortably. If we don't start well and don't get a goal in the first half then we've got to remain tight at the back and defend well and do whatever it takes to keep it 0-0 for as long as possible. If this happens Spurs will get frustrated and the fans will start to get on their back creating more pressure on them, leading to more frustration which will affect their play, giving us a chance. Basically exactly what happens with us at Anfield when we're 0-0 for a long time but a bit worse (they booed their players off at HT a few weeks back!) My prediction is 1-1Defoe for them and Suarez for us.
Yeah good point about making chances pay. We work flat out playing quite nicely for first half hour 45 mins or so without scoring. We then run out of steam and the opposition get their chances and often take them. Bale is the difference between the two teams. We have Suarez, they have Defoe. They have Bale, we have nobody of that standard/form. Not to say we can't get something from the game though.
Can't believe you are comparing Defoe to Suarez. Its like comparing Downing to Bale. You should give some players of ours a little more credit than you currently are giving them Suarez is miles ahead of Defoe!! Spurs fans would bite your hand off if you offered them a straight swap Suarez for Defoe!
Well no it isn't really is it? Thats just nonsense. I know he isn't as good - but he has a similar impact scoring a considerable proportion of their goals like Suarez does for us.
You compared Suarez to Defoe then said we have no one of the quality of Bale, and that's the difference between the teams! We have no one like Bale but they don't have anyone of the quality of Suarez! Or Johnson! Or Agger & Skrtel! More positivity please mr.b4f
