Swansea v Tottenham Betting Tip 2 – 31 December 2011

Premier League Tips

Saturday 31st December 2011

English Premier League

Swansea v Tottenham

Swansea host high flying Spurs at the Liberty Stadium hoping to put a dent in Harry Redknapp’s side bid for the Premier League title.

Brendan Rodgers has earned many plaudits both during last season’s promotion campaign and for Swansea’s first foray into the Premier League. The reason why so many people have been complimentary about the Welsh side is the style of football that they play – they keep the ball for fun. The only real criticism that you can hold against them is that they don’t score enough goals. They have scored the fewest amount of goals out of all the teams in the Premier League and if it does continue, then there is a chance that they could slip down the table and end up in the relegation battle. Their most recent game, a 1-1 draw with QPR at home, was probably symptomatic of their season to date as they had a lot of the ball but they didn’t do much with it and had to settle for another draw – their seventh of the season and fourth at home.

Spurs have been in scinitilating form since the opening fortnight of the season when they lost to both Manchester clubs. Since then, however, they have not looked back and have accumulated more points from the following 15 matches than any other side – including the two teams who sit above them. Tuesday’s 2-0 success at Norwich was another excellent performance with both goals coming from Gareth Bale in the second half. The most impressive thing about Spurs this season has been their attacking approach which, alongside both City and United’s similar style of play, has made this first half of the season very enjoyable. The likes of Rafael Van Der Vaart, Luca Modric, Bale and Emmanuel Adebayor are in the form of their lives and if they can keep those four fit then there is every chance that they can continue their recent form and their pursuit of the Premier League title.

The Swans may well not score enough goals but they do boast the best defensive record in the league at home. They have conceded just three goals at the Liberty thus far and that record has meant that they have also lost just one home game – against Manchester United. Sustaining that record will be key to their chances of survival you would think as they have yet to win on the road so unless that improves in the near future, they need to remain strong and hard to beat when playing in South Wales.

Spurs away form has been very good and is the biggest difference compared to recent seasons. They have always held their own when playing at White Hart Lane under Redknapp but their main flaw has come on their travels where they have been unable to find a real consistency. Tomorrow’s match will be another test but the fact they have already won on the road against the likes of Fulham, West Brom and of course Norwich, teams who are also pretty strong at home, should mean they go there with a lot of hope.

Tomorrow’s match will depend on who set’s the tempo and how well Swansea defend against the attacking threat that is Bale, VDV, Adebayor and Modric. Their sole defeat came against United and was down to a mistake from Angel Rangel trying to play too much football. The better teams punish those errors and that’s the reason why I fancy Spurs to notch yet another victory.

My Selection: Tottenham to beat Swansea

Best odds available: 8/11 available with PaddyPower

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