Paul Merson is tipping things to go from bad to worse for Tottenham Hotspur when they host Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday, backing the visitors to claim a 2-1 win.
Spurs head into the game looking to bounce back from the disappointment of their 3-1 defeat by local rivals Arsenal in Sunday’s north London derby clash at The Emirates.
Nuno Espirito Santo has found himself under intense pressure in recent days after Spurs lost their last three games on the trot in the Premier League to leave them 11th in the table.
Tottenham did go some way towards restoring some of their confidence on Thursday night when they claimed a 5-1 victory over NS Mura in the Europa Conference League, with Harry Kane netting a hat-trick for the home side and adding to goals from Dele Alli and Giovani Lo Celso.
Aston Villa, meanwhile, were in great form as they claimed a surprise 1-0 victory away to Manchester United last weekend thanks to Kortney Hause’s late goal.
The north Londoners will now be determined to pick up their first Premier League win since August as they look to get their campaign back on track.
However, former Arsenal star Merson has been impressed by what he has seen from Villa in recent games, and he is tipping them to snatch a dramatic 2-1 away win in north London on Sunday.
Writing in his column for Sportskeeda, Merson said: “Aston Villa were really good against Manchester United. They deserved to get a positive result and they did as Bruno Fernandes missed a stoppage-time penalty to restore parity at Old Trafford. Ultimately, the game will boil down to the version of Tottenham Hotspur that turns up.
“Will it be the side that got absolutely rolled over by Chelsea and Arsenal, or will it be the team that gave Chelsea a game in the first 45 minutes and also beat Manchester City on the opening day of the Premier League season? If Spurs hit the front in the opening exchanges, they are a hard team to play against.
“I like Villa and after careful consideration, I fancy them to win this one 2-1. The way Spurs are playing now and their attitude scares me. If they don’t change, I can’t see them getting anything from this game. A loss would put serious pressure on Nuno Espirito Santo, especially with the international break coming up after the Premier League weekend. This is a massive game for Spurs and the Portuguese manager, it has to be said.”