Tottenham make the trip to the coast for their third Premier League game of the season against Bournemouth this Saturday. The opening two games of the season have reaped different results for both sides, with three points being needed by both for their different aims for the season.
Bournemouth finished in 15th in the Premier League last season and will be looking to once again secure survival and move even higher up the table. So far, The Cherries sit 14th after two games. Bournemouth have drawn one game and lost the other, sitting on one point.
The Cherries opened their Premier League season with a visit from West Ham. After a goalless first half, Jarrod Bowen scored to give The Hammers the lead. However, Dominic Solanke, one of Bournemouth’s top scorers last season, came to The Cherries’ rescue with a goal in the 82nd minute to grab their one point for the season so far.
The first away day of Bournemouth’s season was at Anfield, a stadium Bournemouth have never won at. Antoine Semenyo got The Cherries off to the perfect start with a goal in the third minute. Despite a red card to Alexis Mac Allister on his Anfield debut, Luis Diaz, Mohamed Salah and Diogo Jota all scored to grab a 3 - 1 win for Liverpool.
Tottenham had an underwhelming campaign last season, finishing eighth and outside of the European football spots. However, with a new manager, Ange Postecoglu, Spurs have had a good start without starman Harry Kane after his move to Bayern Munich. Tottenham sit on four points from a possible six, down in sixth with a win and a draw.
Spurs had the short journey to West London for their first game of the season against Brentford. Cristian Romero opened the scoring for Tottenham before being substituted due to a knock to the head and a concussion precaution. Bryan Mbeumo converted the penalty after Son Heung-min fouled Mathias Jensen in the area. Yoane Wissa scored to make it 2 - 1 to Brentford but Tottenham struck back before halftime as Emerson Royal redeemed himself with a goal after his mistake for the Wissa goal.
Postecoglou’s home debut for Tottenham came against Manchester United. Though an even game, with both teams having good chances in the first half, Tottenham turned up the tempo in the second half. Pape Sarr grabbed his first Tottenham goal early in the second half and from there Spurs controlled the game. Ben Davies’ strike was helped past Andre Onana by his own player Lisandro Martinez.
Bournemouth and Tottenham have met only 13 times in their histories. The first meeting came back in 1957 in the FA Cup and the two didn’t meet again until 2015 when Bournemouth returned to the top flight. Tottenham have won eight times, with Bournemouth winning just three times. The remaining two games ended in a share of the points.
Though not a common occurrence, the most recent game ended in a Bournemouth win. Son opened the scoring for Spurs before Matias Vina equalised before halftime. The Cherries then took the lead through Solanke but Spurs then equalised through Arnaut Danjuma before Dango Ouattara grabbed the winner in the 95th minute.