BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE
Venue: White Hart Lane Date: Saturday, 25 August KO 15:00 GMT
TEAM NEWS
Tottenham defender Jan Vertonghen is set to make his debut as Younes Kaboul is ruled out with a knee injury.
Emmanuel Adebayor is set to start following the completion of his transfer from Man City on Tuesday.
West Brom’s Graham Dorrans may be available as his daughter continues to make steady progress in her recovery from meningitis in hospital.
Aside from Dorrans, manager Steve Clarke has a fully fit squad to choose from.
MATCH PREVIEW
These two clubs suffered contrasting emotions on an opening day of the season that threw up more than its fair share of surprises.
Andre Villas-Boas lost his first game in charge of Tottenham at Newcastle, while Steve Clarke saw his new charges at West Brom enjoy the result of the weekend with a superb 3-0 win over Liverpool.
There were fears that in the post-Roy Hodgson era West Brom could struggle, but on the evidence of game one their achievement in finishing 11th and 10th in the last two seasons could be matched – or even bettered.
Defeat to West Brom last season was the final nail in the coffin of Andre Villas-Boas’s ill-fated spell at Chelsea, and while another beating by the Baggies would certainly not result in a P45 in the post, alarm bells would start to ring for some Spurs fans already unconvinced by his appointment.
However, there is a feeling that until the transfer saga involving the departure of Luka Modric, and the arrival of his potential replacement(s), the club’s season cannot properly begin.
The brinkmanship employed by chairman Daniel Levy over transfer fees and negotiations has brought impressive financial returns for the club over the years, but there has always been a sense that there drawn out nature has often left the club short on the field.
How Spurs could have done with striker Emanuel Adebayor at St James’ Park but at least AVB can call on him now after his transfer from Manchester City was finally concluded in midweek.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
- Tottenham completed the double over West Brom last season, winning 3-1 at the Hawthorns and 1-0 at White Hart Lane.
- The Baggies have only won two of 12 Premier League matches against Tottenham.
- West Brom’s last win at White Hart Lane was a 3-2 victory in November 1984.
- This is the 135th meeting between the sides. Tottenham have won 53, West Brom 52 and there have been 29 draws.
Tottenham
- Tottenham dropped only 15 points out of 57 at home last season having won 13, drawn three and lost three.
- Andre Villas-Boas has now won just three of his last 13 Premier League matches (12 of those in charge of Chelsea, one with Tottenham).
- By giving away a penalty against Newcastle, Spurs matched the number of penalties they conceded in the whole of the last league season.
West Brom
- West Brom started last season with four defeats in their opening five league matches, but got off to a flier this season with a superb 3-0 win over Liverpool.
- Until that victory over Liverpool, West Brom had not won any of their last 13 opening day matches in the top-flight, stretching back to August 1978.
- West Brom won seven away matches in the league last season. In five previous seasons in the Premier League they had managed a total of just 10 away victories.
