Key events
Tottenham v Brentford: the teams
Tottenham: Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Skipp, Bentancur; Kulusevski, Maddison, Werner; Richarlison.
Subs: Forster, Højbjerg, Dragusin, Gil, Emerson, Johnson, Davies, Scarlett, Donley.
Brentford: Flekken; Collins, Pinnock, Mee, Roerslev, Jensen, Norgaard, Janelt, Lewis-Potter, Maupay, Toney.
Subs: Strakosha, Fredrick, Dasilva, Jorgensen, Ajer, Damsgaard, Baptiste, Yarmolyuk, Brierley.
Man City v Burnley teams: Haaland on bench
Erling Haaland is back on the team sheet, but only on the bench as Júlian Álvarez starts up front with Kevin De Bruyne making his first start since coming back from injury. Burnley make one change from the 1-1 draw with Luton on 12 January, with Sander Berge replacing Josh Cullen in midfield.
Manchester City (4-2-3-1): Ederson; Lewis, Stones, Aké, Gvardiol; Rodri, Matheus Nunes; Foden, De Bruyne, Doku; Álvarez.
Subs: Ortega, Walker, Dias, Kovacic, Bernardo Silva, Gomez, Grealish, Haaland, Bobb.
Burnley (4-4-2): Trafford; Vitinho, O’Shea, Ekdal, Al Dakhil; Gudmundsson, Berge, Brownhill, Odobert; Foster, Amdouni.
Subs: Muric, Fofana, Cork, Roberts, Zaroury, Ramsey, Cullen, Bruun Larsen, Massengo.
Preamble
This week’s glut of Premier League games are the reverse fixtures from the opening day back in distant, sun-kissed August, and so offer us an opportunity to take stock of the teams’ campaigns so far.
Manchester City began the season in ominous fashion, winning 3-0 at Burnley; the problem for Pep Guardiola is that was also the last time Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne were on the pitch together. Both could feature tonight and with a winnable run of games ahead for City, that’s bad news for everyone else.
For Burnley, that was the first puncture in a balloon of pre-season hope that quickly deflated. Vincent Kompany’s side have collected 12 points in 20 games since, but a shock win tonight at the ground where he has a statue outside could kickstart an unlikely escape bid.
The vibes at Tottenham remain positive, with Ange Postecoglou steering the team towards the top four. After kicking off with a 2-2 at Brentford, Spurs won eight of their next nine games – but have followed that up with four wins from the last 11 league matches.
Expectations meeting reality, or a worrying downward trend? Tonight’s game will offer us clues. Thomas Frank’s busy Bees have lost their sting in a slide down the table, but Ivan Toney is back and presumably keen to make an impact against a club that could still buy him tomorrow.
We’ll also keep tabs on Liverpool v Chelsea – which is being covered separately by Scott Murray – and check in on La Liga, the Women’s Champions League and EFL Championship. Stay tuned!