MF looks ahead to Stoke vs Spurs

WWWWDWWWWWW.  A lovely sequence, but being a Spurs fan you’ve got to find something to moan about so – it’s a shame about that D. If only Jermain had tucked his late effort into the corner instead of barreling it straight at Krul. Oh well.

Stoke this weekend. Never an easy prospect of course, especially at the Britannia. The neanderthals from the Potteries against the London artisans? Not quite of course. Etherington and Pennant for starters don’t fit the official stereotype but there are plenty of others who do. Mentioning no names but our own Crouchy was a key summer signing, and much as though I love him for his decisive interventions in Middle Eastlands and the San Siro, you’re not going to buy him if you intend to tiki-taka your way to the top.

Stoke’s form has been up and down, they sit eighth in the table. Their home record has been slightly less fortress like than usual, with three wins, two draws and two defeats (against Newcastle and QPR). They won their last two Premier League games against Blackburn and Everton but lost the four previous to that. So unusual signs of vulnerability.

Under Redknapp Spurs have a perfect record in this fixture. Our nine-man, blood everywhere, 2-1 defeat in October 2008 represented the nadir of Juande Ramos’s reign but since then the 2-1 scoreline has been the other way around and Gudjohnsen, Bale and Kranjcar have all netted spectacular goals.

Harry may have a couple of decisions to make. If King is fit then presumably he’ll come back in with Gallas dropping out whilst up front it’ll be bit of a surprise if Defoe isn’t allowed to carry on with Adebayor but on the other hand, we all know how much Redknapp, quite rightly, loves Van der Vaart so don’t put your money on it.

Chris Foy is down to referee and with five red cards already this season (including two in the QPR v Chelsea game) he’s clearly not a man to be trifled with.

Confidence won’t be an issue neither should complacency. Expectations are high. Surely seven wins in a row is too much ask for? Not if we’re capable of performances that can be described as “as good as it gets” by Alan Hansen. Come on Spurs, keep the run going. COYS.

By MF