Premier League: Battle at Etihad Stadium

OTTENHAM IS NOT AFRAID OF MAN . CITY

Last season, Tottenham won 4-0 at the Etihad Stadium in the Premier League, after beating and eliminating Man.City from the League Cup. And in the last time they reached the Champions League final, Tottenham also eliminated Man.City in the knockout stage. To be fair, the two sides are on two different levels, of course Man.City is always rated higher. But if the concept of "nemesis" really exists in top football, then Tottenham is such an object for Man.City. In the last 12 direct confrontations in the Premier League, Tottenham won one and a half times more than Man.City won.

Now the story must be different, because leading Tottenham is only Mr. Thomas Frank - a coach with no title, just transferred from the small team Brentford? Strangely, Frank himself also caused a big surprise when he had to lead the team to face the famous coach Pep Guardiola right at the Etihad Stadium (Brentford beat Man.City at the end of 2022). Up to now, there have only been 2 coaches who have won 2 times against Guardiola on the opponent's field, that is Jose Mourinho (with Real Madrid, MU) and Antonio Conte (with Chelsea, Tottenham). It would be an unimaginable story if the little-known character Thomas Frank became the 3rd person to do so in this weekend's round.

The three strongest candidates for the championship, Man.City, Liverpool, and Arsenal, all won in the opening round of the Premier League last weekend. Although quieter and less noticed, Tottenham was also very successful with a resounding 3-0 victory over Burnley. Connected to the previous European Super Cup match (Tottenham only lost to Champions League champions PSG in the 11m penalty shootout), it is clear that coach Frank has had a good start when leading a famous team for the first time. If Tottenham can beat Man.City in the early match of today's series (6:30 p.m. on August 23), they will quickly become a formidable "dark horse" in the race for the championship, while coach Thomas Frank will become a bright new face in the top football world.

Ngoại hạng Anh: Đại chiến trên sân Etihad- Ảnh 1. — If they can neutralize striker Haaland *(before)* , Tottenham will get points at Etihad Stadium.

New signing Tijjani Reijnders shone in midfield, while striker Erling Haaland also scored 2 goals in Man.City's opening match. Those continue to be the two most dangerous positions that coach Thomas Frank's team needs to focus all their efforts to neutralize in this difficult match. On Tottenham's side, the belief in victory is not low, with Richarlison just scoring 2 goals in the opening match. New signing Mohammed Kudus assisted both goals. Tottenham's number 1 scorer last season, Brennan Johnson, also scored against Burnley in the opening match. Tottenham has never won more than that in the opening round of the Premier League. They are gaining important confidence to enter this difficult but promising match.

S UNDERLAND ALSO HAS A CHANCE TO RISE UP

There is only one other match in this round, with two teams who won their opening match: Arsenal and Leeds. Despite winning at Old Trafford, Arsenal did not play convincingly. Mikel Arteta's team will certainly be more determined in their home debut this season. Leeds are only a newly promoted team. In the last 14 seasons, Arsenal have never lost to a newly promoted team (W37, D5 in 42 matches).

The latest match of round 2 is worth noting when Liverpool visits Newcastle. The home team only drew 0-0 with Aston Villa in the opening match, while Liverpool won "very thrillingly" against Bournemouth. Both sides have revealed major weaknesses that need to be overcome. For Newcastle, the situation of striker Alexander Isak staying or going is becoming increasingly uncomfortable. Meanwhile, Liverpool will have to work hard to overcome a series of gaps in the defense.

Newly promoted Sunderland have just beaten West Ham 3-0. If they beat Burnley again this round, they could go top of the table. Nottingham Forest are also in the running (they beat Brentford 3-1 last round, and will face Crystal Palace this time).