Why Do Manchester City Struggle Against Tottenham?

Manchester City rarely lose against any team these days but Tottenham have strangely become their bogey team in recent seasons.

Manchester City V Tottenham record

Manchester City (W66) and Spurs (W66) have a tight record which could see either side go in front by Sunday evening. There has also been 36 draws in this fixtures history.

But since the 2018/19 season, Manchester City have not gone a season without dropping points against Spurs. In eight recent Premier League meetings; Spurs have won four compared to Manchester City’s three with the one remaining ending in a draw.

Tottenham have also tormented Manchester City in the Champions League too in that classic from the 2018/19 season campaign which saw Spurs make it all the way to the final.

Why do Manchester City struggle against Tottenham?

Now Spurs aren’t a poor team; they’ve had a bad past couple of seasons but they’re almost always in a European competition. But Manchester City are a side that have consistently been winning titles, consistently finishing on 95+ points. This begs the question; what is it about Spurs?

Could the answer be counter attacking football?  The partnership between Heung-min Son and Harry Kane played a huge part in Tottenham’s recent successes over City. The 3-2 win over Manchester City in February of 2022 is a perfect example. Kane’s superb holdup play then matched with the pace of Son was lethal for City and left their defence exposed too often.

Tottenham were allowed to leave men back to deal with City’s constant possession but whenever Spurs retrieved the ball it was find Kane and he’ll find either of the wingers.

Manchester City just haven’t learned from that in recent years. But with the departure of Kane and Ange Postecoglou having a different playing style to the likes of Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte, we should see a different type of game this weekend.

Where can I watch Manchester City V Tottenham?

Manchester City V Tottenham will be broadcasted on Sky Sports Premier League this Sunday (3rd December) with a 4:30pm kick-off.