MANCHESTER CITY face Tottenham in their penultimate Premier League match of the season on Tuesday.
Pep Guardiola’s side travel to North London for their game in hand over leaders Arsenal.
A victory will see the treble winners return to the top of the table with a two-point lead heading into the final day.
Meanwhile, a draw would see City and the Gunners go into Sunday’s matches level on points, with Arsenal having a superior goal difference.
Spurs need one more point to be certain of a top five finish, whilst they could still qualify for the Champions League.
If Aston Villa do not beat Liverpool on Monday night, avoiding defeat against City will see Spurs take the top four battle to the last day.
The reverse fixture in December ended in a 3-3 draw at the Etihad Stadium after a last minute equaliser from Dejan Kulusevski.
City have already won at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this season, though.
Nathan Ake’s goal was the difference in the FA Cup fourth round back in January.
Spurs snapped a four-match losing streak by beating Burnley 2-1 on Saturday.
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Prior to the narrow victory, Ange Postecoglou’s side had conceded 13 goals across their run of four straight defeats.
However, they have failed to win just one of their last five home league matches dating back to March 2.
Tottenham have also won each of their last four home league matches against City without conceding.
City have lost to Spurs in the Premier League under Guardiola more than any other side.
The reigning champions are on a 21-match unbeaten run in the league, though, after beating Fulham at the weekend.
That 4-0 victory continued their stunning away from, which has seen City win four in a row by an aggregate score of 10-0.
Postecoglou faces no fresh injury concerns heading into the match.
Spurs remain without seven players who have been ruled out for the season, including Destiny Udogie, Richarlison and Timo Werner.
For City, Ake is being assessed after he was forced off with a foot injury at Craven Cottage.
Jack Grealish could return from illness, though, having missed Saturday’s win.
With Richarlison’s absence, Spurs are even more reliant on captain Son Heung-min for goals.
The forward has scored 17 goals across all competitions this season, including five in 13 matches since returning from the Asian Cup.
His record against City is also impressive, with eight goals and four assists in 18 meetings with Tuesday’s opponents.
As for the visitors, Phil Foden is enjoying the best season of his career.
The FWA Footballer of the Year scored his 17th league goal of the season against Fulham.
Foden was also on the scoresheet against Spurs at the Etihad Stadium earlier this season.
Speaking after the win over Burnley, Postecoglou explained: “It’s always difficult when you lose four matches in a row and it is only natural there will be a bit of anxiety and a bit of stress there.
“For the most part I think we handled the game well and we finished the game strong.”
On facing Tottenham, Guardiola told the media on Monday: “This is a team that we’ve played twice this season. If we don’t win we aren’t going to win the Premier League, so this is what we have to do.
“It’s always so demanding to play there [at Tottenham], especially this season. They are so aggressive. At Anfield they are losing 4-0 but they continue to stick to what they believe.
“There are difficulties but we know what we are playing for.”
Despite their recent form away to Spurs, City have appeared unbeatable in recent weeks.
Guardiola’s side have once again clicked into gear at the right time as they chase a fourth consecutive league title.
In contrast, Spurs are all but assured of a fifth place finish and are under next to no pressure going into the match.
SunSport prediction – 0-2
*Odds courtesy of Ladbrokes and correct at time of publication.
