All the statistics for the Saints visit to White Hart Lane to take on the North London Soccer Chickens
Tottenham v Southampton
White Hart Lane plays host to high-flying Southampton this Sunday, in what is set to be a tough test for Mauricio Pochettino’s side. Tottenham sit five points behind Sunderland in the league and a win would allow them to close that gap and start to put pressure on the teams around them. Last season’s equivalent fixture saw Spurs clinch a last gasp 3-2 win, and this weekend’s encounter has the potential to be just as entertaining.
Tottenham’s Nacer Chadli has continued his prolific start to the season, scoring again against Arsenal in last weekend’s North London derby. Chadli now has 4 goals in 5 Premier League games, with a conversion rate of 36.4%, according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index. Chadli is likely to start this weekend and there is no reason why he should not extend his run of goalscoring, should he produce similar performances to those he has displayed in recent weeks. Chadli is 17/2 with 888sport to be first goalscorer against Southampton.
The most involved player on the pitch so far this season has been Etienne Capoue. The majority of play has gone through the central midfield, and Capoue has made 417 successful passes thus far in the Premier League, the most of any Spurs player and fourth most in the division. The closest to him in the Tottenham squad is Christian Eriksen who has successfully completed 268 passes, according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
Another midfielder who Pochettino seemingly rates highly is Nabil Bentaleb. The Algerian has shown a particularly good work ethic this season and has recorded an average speed of 7.4km/h this season, the highest of any Spurs player who has played a full 90 minutes, according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
Throughout the summer, Tottenham were interested in Southampton midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin, but the French midfielder is still lining up for Southampton this weekend, and his form so far this season vindicates the club’s decision to do all they could to hold on to him. The EA SPORTS Player Performance Index shows that he has scored three goals, won more tackles than anyone else in the squad (25) and covered more ground than any other Premier League player, running a total of 72.4km this season — and has arguably been their player of the season so far.
One player who would rival Schneiderlin for this title is Graziano Pellè. The imposing striker has the second most shots on target in the Premier League so far this season with ten, and he has been rewarded with four goals, ranking him third in the top-scorers list for the season, according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index. Pellè is 7/4 to score at any time with 888sport.
He, along with Dusan Tadic have been revelations this season. Tadic already has three assists in his debut season in the Premier League. The winger has made ten
successful crosses, which has played a large part in Pellè’s goalscoring form this season. Only Stewart Downing has delivered more successful balls in to the box than Tadic in the Premier League and the Serbian should prove a huge threat to the Spurs defence this weekend.
Data supplied by the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index. Select and manage your own team of stars at fantasy.premierleague.com or with FIFA Ultimate Team for FIFA 15.