The Dugout Discussion – Tottenham v Sunderland

Saturday’s curtain-raiser finds Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland colliding at White Hart Lane in the wake of contrasting results earlier in the week. Spurs will be keen to make amends for a 1-0 home defeat at the hands of Leicester City, while the Black Cats travel to north London in jubilant spirits following their 4-2 victory over Swansea City.

In spite of their blank on Wednesday, Tottenham rank third for attempts (65) and shots on target (22) over the last four Gameweeks. However, Mauricio Pochettino’s outfit have struggled to convert their territorial dominance into clear-cut opportunities, carding just four big chances across that stretch. On the defensive end, only two clubs conceded fewer goals than Spurs (three), who also surrendered the fewest big chances (one).

Only Stoke City managed more goals (10 compared to eight) and a better shot-conversion rate (22.2% to 20.5%) than Sunderland over the last four Gameweeks, underlining their recent flourish in the final third. Nonetheless, the Wearsiders’ rearguard failed to hold up their end of the bargain, shipping the joint-most goals (eight). Those Fantasy managers who’ve sourced attacking coverage from Spurs will be encouraged by the fact that Sunderland place top for goals conceded (30) in away fixtures.