Tottenham Hotspur will welcome West London team Queens Park Rangers to White Hart Lane on Sunday, in their second London derby in as many weeks. Spurs attended a derby last week in their opening fixture of the season, playing against West Ham United at Upton Park, whilst Rangers hosted Hull City at Loftus Road. This week the pair will come face to face in North London, but can Tottenham achieve two wins from two league matches?
Spurs may have got lucky last week at West Ham, as Mark Noble missed a penalty for the Hammers and Tottenham managed to grab a win via new boy Eric Dier in the last minute of added time. On the other hand, QPR found hard luck as they failed to beat Hull City at Loftus Road. After dominating the match, Charlie Austin missed a penalty for the R’s after James Chester put the Tigers one up, and Rangers failed to equalise.
Last Time they met
The last time the two met was in January of 2013 at Loftus Road, during the season QPR were relegated. The game finished 0-0, and so proved to be a good result for the home team. However the last team the pair met at White Hart Lane, Spurs walked away with the three points, struggling to a 2-1 win after Bobby Zamora put the R’s one up in the first half. This shows that it promises to be a tight affair that could go either way.
Key Players
The home side will be looking to Erik Lamela to step up following his rather disappointing debut season and many people expect a lot better from the Argentinian. This season though, I believe, is perfect for him to show the Premier League what he can do. He can cause QPR big problems down the flanks if he’s on his day.
On Thursday, Spurs came back from one down against AEL to win 2-1 in their Europa League qualifier in Cyprus. This was largely thanks to Harry Kane’s impressive performance and his goal. If Kane get’s the nod ahead of Emmanuel Adebayor, I expect him to be a threat for QPR’s defence.
QPR will definitely be looking to Frenchman Loic Remy, who coincidentally has been linked with Spurs today. The striker looked lively in his opening game against Hull, and will look to get his first goal of the season on Sunday.
Wing back Mauricio Isla received international clearance following his loan move from Juventus this week, and the pacey Chilean could definitely make a big impact for the Hoops on his Premier League debut.
Team News
Kyle Naughton is suspended following his dismissal last week at Upton Park. Kyle Walker is out with a hip injury, meaning Eric Dier could play in an unconventional right-back position. Vlad Chiriches is also out with a back injury.
QPR have a fully fit squad. Leroy Fer and Mauricio Isla are both set for debuts. Eduardo Vargas is out of contention because he hasn’t gained a work permit in time following his move from Napoli.
Predicted Lineups
Verdict
I think that QPR could definitely cause Spurs a few problems, as their team just screams out with attacking threat. Although Spurs also have a lot of threats upfront, so I expect a very tight game. Ultimately, I can see a draw being the final outcome and due to the attacking power of both teams, I think it will be a relatively high scoring draw.
Prediction: Tottenham 2-2 QPR