Tottenham vs Manchester United Prediction & Match Preview

Tottenham vs Manchester United Prediction, Tips and Match Preview of the English Premier League clash on 19 June 2020, Friday. Kick-off 20:15 UK/ 21:15 CET at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (London).

The race for top five finish resume when Tottenham Hotspur welcome Manchester United for either sides first game post covid-19 lock down on this Friday.

Mourinho looking to bounce back from a six-match losing streak

Spurs went into the lockdown on the back of a horrendous run, lost 4 in 6, knocked out of Champions League and FA Cup in the process.

Two of those came against RB Leipzig and then the domestic cup exit after penalty shoot out to Premier League relegation candidates Norwich. While in the league, they lost of Chelsea and Wolves while salvaging a point at Burnley.

I must remind you that Harry Kane was injured since the start of January. Meantime Son went to nursing table after the team’s last Premier League win, which is also their last win in any competition, against Aston Villa on 16th February.

With both prolific strikers back in the line-up, Jose Mourinho will be keen to register a win and put his team right back into the Champions League qualification race.

Spurs are currently 8th in the table, 41 points, 4 behind their Friday’s guests sitting at 5th spot.

Unbeaten since January, Red Devils aim Top 4 finish

Manchester United’s fortunes are totally opposite to that of their hosts, looked in fine shape after the 5-0 Europa League thrashing of LASK Linz stretched their unbeaten run across all competitions to 11 games with 8 wins and 3 draws.

And their last completed Premier League game was a morale boosting 2-0 home win against archrivals Manchester City. This put them on a 5-match unbeaten streak in the domestic league, which in turn helped them to get closer to Chelsea in the Champions League qualification race.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had to do this all without Marcus Rashford, who is now winning a million hearts with free school meals U-turn during the pandemic. The 22-year old England international, who is the top scorer of the team with 14 league goals was nursing a back injury since January. He could have missed the entire season, but is deemed fit and raring to have a go this week.

Tottenham vs Manchester United Head-to-head h2h stats

The Red Devils bagged a 2-1 win at Old Trafford in the reverse fixture this season. Rashford score both goals for his team, while Dele Alli netted the consolation goal for Spurs.

Their last 11 h2h duels produced a winner, United stand out with 8 wins against 3 wins for Spurs.

While playing at home, Spurs managed decent success in recent time, despite losing 0-1 in the same fixture last season. They were unbeaten in previous 6 with 3 wins and draws.

Tottenham vs Manchester United Prediction

This is a close one to call with the mid table being tight and teams rejuvenated and recovered most of their injured players during the lockdown. Therefore, we will not be looking at the full-time result, but goals markets since either end of the pitch have some match winners.

Now, 87% of Tottenham’s Premier League matches this season saw a goal in the first half. It is a small price, but a top pick since 90% of Manchester United’s game saw the same. I will take the 1.44 odd on Over 0.5 goals first half with open arms.

Like I mentioned before, the full-time result is hard to pick, but this is a fixture that normally go down the wire. We can expect one of the teams winning as in the last 11 of their duels across all venues. With teams equipped with some prolific strikers and some midfield maestros who can take some long-range shots, both teams to score and over 2.5 goal combo is a value bet.

Tottenham vs Manchester United Betting Tips

• Over 0.5 goal in the first half @ 4/9 (1.44)

• BTTS & Over 2.5 goals @ 11/10 (2.10).

Norwich City vs Southampton Prediction & Match Preview

Norwich City vs Southampton Prediction, Tips and Match Preview of the English Premier League clash on 19 June 2020, Friday. Kick-off 18:00 UK/ 19:00 CET at the Carrow Road.

Big game for Norwich City on Friday with Premier League survival the top priority as they welcome Southampton to kick start the bid in the first game after covid-19 lockdown.

The Canaries sit at the foot of the table with 21 points, 6 below the safe zone. It requires a massive effort to prevent them from going back down to Championship within 12 months of earning promotion.

Though they manage to improve the performances at home turf lately, unbeaten in 4 of the last 5 with 2 wins and stalemates apiece. And the last game played at the Carrow Road was a massive morale boosting 1-0 win against third placed Leicester City.

Southampton, another of the many teams that started the season with high expectations yet failed miserably. Prior to lockdown, they lost four in five and quickly drawn back to relegation battle. With 34 points, they are 14th in the table, a 7-point drift from the danger zone.

Ralph Hasenhuttl is no stranger to relegation battle and the Saints spend majority of this season near the foot of the table and it was a 11-match spell November and January that pushed them high up the ladder. Seven wins came during this period along with a draw.

Norwich City vs Southampton Head-to-head

The corresponding reverse fixture saw Southampton winning 2-1 at the St. Mary’s Stadium. Danny Ings opened the scoring for the Saints in the 22nd minute while Ryan Bertrand stretched the lead just before half time whistle, the deficit was later reduced in the second half by a Teemu Pukki strike.

The Saints now won 4 of the last 6 meetings with Norwich City, but all those four fixtures were played at their own backyard.

Norwich at home are unbeaten in the last 4 against the Saints, also lost just 3 of the 16 against this opponent, 8 wins and 5 draws to go with it.

Both teams scored in just 1 of the last 5 h2h meetings between the two sides at this stadium across all competitions. This happened to be their most recent tussle here back in the FA Cup 2017 tie (2-2 FT). Also, those four games registered less than 3 goals in total.

Norwich City vs Southampton Prediction

As mentioned at the start, this is a big game for both teams and expect some sparks to fly at the empty Carrow Road this Friday.

Form-wise, neither team managed to convince us that they have what it takes to push for a win, the downside is their similar playing style of high pressure football pressing high up the pitch which often leaves huge gaps to exploit on the wings.

Therefore, goals are guaranteed in this English Premier League relegation six-pointer and I will go both teams to score as the best bet while taking over 2.5 goals full-time as the second option.

I am aware that most of their recent h2h games at this stadium are low scoring affairs, but that is going to change on Friday.

Now the solid stat to back up my analysis result, Norwich scored in 86% of their home matches, while Southampton did find the net in as many away games this season. Meantime, both teams scored in 72% of the Premier League games at this ground.

So, get set for a thriller at Carrow Road this Friday.

And keep an eye on both Danny Ings and Teemu Puuki who scored 15 and 11 EPL goals for their respective teams in the 2019/20 campaign.

Norwich City vs Southampton Bet Tips

• Both teams to Score in the match @ 5/8 (1.63)

• Over 2.5 goals @ 5/6 (1.83).

Genoa go for Helsingborg teen

Genoa are reportedly ready to pay €3m for 18-year-old Swedish midfielder Armin Gigovic after just one game for Helsingborgs IF.
According to Sky Sport Italia transfer expert Gianluca Di Marzio, the Grifone are in negotiations for the player who turned 18 in April.
He has seven caps for Sweden at Under-17 level, but made only one appearance for the senior club squad.
Nonetheless, Gigovic has seemingly done enough to warrant a proposal worth up to €3m from Genoa.
The tall midfielder has been compared to Lazio star Sergej Milinkovic-Savic.

Official: Quarantine rule softened

Minister for Sport Vincenzo Spadafora and Minister for Health Roberto Speranza have signed the paperwork approving the ‘softer’ quarantine rules for COVID-19 cases.

The Serie A, B and C medical protocol was far stricter than the one used in Germany, England or Spain, causing controversy and complaints that the season could grind to a halt immediately after restarting.

That’s because it ruled that if one person in the matchday group tested positive for coronavirus, he would be quarantined for 14 days, but the entire squad and coaching staff would also have to stay isolated for 14 days as a precaution.

Following a downturn in the pandemic curve in Italy and appeals from the FIGC, the CTS (technical scientific committee) agreed that the protocol was unnecessarily harsh.

It required a change of the latest Government decree for the rule to be changed, and that arrived this evening, with Minister for Sport Spadafora and Minister for Health Speranza signing the paperwork that allows for loosening of the decree issued on May 16.

Instead, only the individual who tests positive for COVID-19 will be quarantined, whereas the rest of the squad will ramp up testing, including a rapid-response test the day before a match.

Serie A is due to resume on Saturday with the outstanding Week 25 fixtures, starting with Torino-Parma.

“The missive that regulates the quarantine for professional sports teams, as indicated by the CTS, is another step forward for the completion of this sporting season,” said FIGC President Gabriele Gravina.

“I hope that now with a great sense of responsibility, starting from the fans who fuel their passion for football every day, that we can behave in a way that avoids making these efforts in vain.”

Lazio aim swipes at Juve and Roma

Lazio spokesman Arturo Diaconale hopes to follow Napoli by ‘tripping up’ Juventus, while taking a swipe at neighbours Roma. ‘We want to prove our club model is better.’
The Aquile are one point behind Juve in the Serie A table and hope to pick up where they left off, especially as the Bianconeri are shaken by losing the Coppa Italia Final to Napoli.
“We are very happy for Napoli’s victory, as Aurelio De Laurentiis has created a club model at Napoli that is similar to Lazio and one that other teams ought to be following,” Lazio spokesman Diaconale told Radio Kiss Kiss.
“Hopefully, we too can celebrate tripping up Juventus in the Serie A title race, seeing as we already beat them twice this season.”
The Biancocelesti won in Serie A and again 3-1 in the Italian Supercup in December.
Meanwhile, there was chaos across the Capital at Roma today with news the club has suspended director of sport Gianluca Petrachi following a disagreement with President James Pallotta, who remains in America.
“We want to prove that our club model is better than that of our cousins,” added the Lazio representative.
“Having a President who makes his presence known and is close to the team can make the difference.”

Despliegue de artillería blanca en el di Stéfano

El Real Madrid le endosa un devastador 3-0 a un Valencia que no tuvo suerte en ataque, ni tampoco supo cómo parar las ofensivas de los locales lideradas por un exquisito Karim Benzema, un crucial Eden Hazard y un rompedor Marco Asensio.

Llegaba la jornada 29 y el Real Madrid y el Valencia se citaban en la capital para brindarnos una nueva edición de uno de los clásicos de nuestro fútbol. Los jugadores del Real Madrid salían al campo sabiendo que tenían prohibido perder puntos en la jornada 29, ya que el Barcelona había ganado su partido contra el Leganés y la victoria era indispensable para no descolgarse de la lucha por el título. El Valencia, por su parte, llegaba a la capital predispuesto a volver a la costa con los deberes hechos. Los de Celades pelean por colarse en los puestos europeos y sabían que tenían que mantener la concentración en todo momento ya que su rival pelea por nada más y nada menos que levantar el título de LaLiga Santander 2019/2020.

El Valencia resiste las internadas blancas

Jose María Sánchez Martínez daba el pitido inicial y los jugadores se vieron envueltos en un silencio que no se correspondía con las dimensiones de este encuentro. En el Estadio Alfredo di Stéfano, los gritos de los entrenadores y los compañeros de equipo sustituyeron los cánticos y los aplausos del público del Santiago Bernabéu. Sin el aliento de su afición, los vikingos se lanzaron al ataque y atosigaron a los ches durante los primeros minutos del partido. Cillessen tuvo que sudar la gota gorda para neutralizar los disparos de Hazard, Kroos y Benzema, quienes ponían de su parte para controlar los primeros compases del encuentro.

Fuente: realmadrid.com

Dos sustos ralentizan el partido

Aunque la maquinaria blanca consiguió dominar el principio del encuentro, el Valencia no cedió ante la presión ni se durmió, es más, logró soltar un buen derechazo mientras que el Madrid bajaba la guardia al ver que gran parte de la acción tenía lugar en la mitad de campo rival. Rodrigo recibió el balón en el último tercio del campo y disparó, pero el balón hizo vibrar el poste de la portería de Courtois y no permitió que los ches se adelantaran en el marcador. Cinco minutos más tarde, el VAR separó a los visitantes de tomar ventaja en el encuentro puesto que el gol de Rodrigo fue anulado por fuera de juego posicional de Maxi Gómez. La revisión provocó que se produjera una pausa de unos 4 minutos en el ecuador de la primera parte y el ritmo deceleró conforme al partido se acercaba al descanso.

Hazard le afloja la tuerca a Benzema

El Madrid volvió a salir con fuerza en la segunda parte y se hizo con el balón. Los ches no conseguían quitarse de encima a los blancos, que amenazaban los aledaños del área de Cillessen hasta que finalmente, en el minuto 60, pasó lo que empezaba a parecer inevitable. Karim Benzema ponía el 1 a 0 en el electrónico a pase de Eden Hazard, quien demostró su valía siendo una pieza clave en la fase ofensiva del juego de los blancos.

Fuente: realmadrid.com

Asensio, como si nada hubiera pasado

Tras casi un año de baja, Asensio por fin volvió a pisar el terreno de juego. El mallorquín entró sustituyendo a Valverde y se incorporó al área junto a los demás jugadores, que esperaban a que Toni Kroos reanudara el juego desde el córner. El saque terminaría en los pies de Mendy, que demostró su habilidad para desbordar y le puso un pase al pie a Asensio, que puso el 2 a 0 con el primer toque que daba en el partido. Pero la cosa no queda ahí, porque minutos después, con un Valencia impotente y frustrado, Marco asistió a Benzema con un pase algo incómodo, pero el francés domó el balón como si el fútbol pasara a una velocidad diferente por sus botas y clavó el esférico en la escuadra para poner punto y final a la exhibición de los merengues.

Fuente: realmadrid.com

El Valencia no pudo hacer nada ante un Real Madrid cuya delantera funcionó a la perfección mientras que las otras líneas le siguieron el ritmo. Los blancos, a excepción de Jovic, disponen de mucha pólvora en punta y reciben otro empujón más en dirección al primer puesto, ocupado todavía por el Barcelona, que tiene una cita importantísima en el Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán en la próxima jornada.

L'UEFA ASSOUPLIT LES RÈGLES DU FAIR-PLAY FINANCIER

Petit coup de Soupline.

Comme attendu, l'UEFA a promis ce jeudi un assouplissement (temporaire) des règles du fair-play financier. L'instance européenne explique que des « mesures d'urgence temporaires » ont été adoptées afin de « tenir compte des répercussions négatives du Covid-19 sur les finances des clubs » . Le but étant d'offrir aux clubs un peu plus de flexibilité durant la période des transferts pour les aider à assumer les charges salariales, et « plus de temps pour quantifier et expliquer les pertes non anticipées en matière de recettes » .


Les clubs auront donc 365 jours de plus pour mettre de l'ordre dans les comptes de 2020, et les années 2020 et 2021 seront considérées ensemble. En revanche, ces assouplissements des règles du FPF ne s'appliqueront pas à l'OM. Le club phocéen avait transmis début mars son dossier à l'instance de jugement du contrôle financier des clubs, et sera prochainement fixé sur son sort.

Même le professeur Raoult aura du mal à les sortir de ce mauvais pas.