Spurs v Liverpool – history, stats and facts

This evening, we return to Premier League action as we take on Liverpool in north London (8pm kick-off).

Ahead of the clash at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, we take a look at the history of the fixture, some of its recent key moments and the statistics behind both sides’ seasons so far, as well as the pre-match view from our opposition.

History

Our recent league record against Liverpool doesn’t make for easy reading. We have secured victory in just one of our last 18 meetings, which includes defeats in each of our last five games against them. However, history does shine a hopeful light on our upcoming fixture, as six consecutive defeats against the Reds is something that we have not endured in our history.

Our most recent win against Jurgen Klopp’s men came back in October, 2017, as a first-half blitz at Wembley set us on our way to victory. Harry Kane had us ahead within four minutes at the national stadium before Heung-Min Son produced a clinical finish, rounding off a scintillating counter-attacking move to make it 2-0 with just 12 minutes on the clock. Mo Salah did go on to halve our advantage mid-way through the first period but Dele was on hand on the stroke of half time to reassert our control with a fine strike. Harry then capped off a terrific win under the iconic arch with a close-range finish 11 minutes after the restart.

In terms of wins in N17, our last such triumph over the Reds came just over eight years ago in what was an all-action game for Gareth Bale. Like in 2017, it was early goals that paid dividends for us – first, Aaron Lennon tapped home Gareth’s cross on seven minutes before the forward found the target himself with a swirling free-kick just nine minutes later. On 72 minutes, the visitors did pull one back to set-up a nervy final 18 minutes after Bale inadvertently sent the ball into his own net - an Aaron Lennon goal-line clearance cannoning in off the Welshman’s face. Yet, we held on to earn ourselves a huge three points in north London and our sixth straight home win over the Reds.

Having won 2-0 against 2018/19 league champions Manchester City last season, victory for us this evening would mark the first time we have beaten reigning Premier League champions at home in consecutive campaigns since we defeated Manchester United at White Hart Lane in both the 1999/2000 and 2000/01 seasons.

History also suggests that the two players who are likely to have the most significant impact on this game are Harry Kane and Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino. Starting with our man in form, Harry, in his 11 Premier League appearances to date against Liverpool, he has been directly involved in eight goals (six goals, two assists) – that makes him the highest scorer in this fixture of those currently playing for either side. His recent run against the Reds includes scoring four goals in his last six games. The forward will also be looking to score for the fourth consecutive Premier League game on Thursday – something he hasn’t managed since January, 2019. Firmino, meanwhile, has scored four goals in his last five games against us – three of those were match-winning goals, including Liverpool’s last-minute winner against us in their 2-1 triumph in December.

Our last five meetings

16 December, 2020 – Liverpool 2-1 Spurs – Premier League
11 January, 2020 – Spurs 0-1 Liverpool – Premier League
27 October, 2019 – Liverpool 2-1 Spurs – Premier League
1 June, 2019 – Spurs 0-2 Liverpool – UEFA Champions League Final, Madrid
31 March, 2019 – Liverpool 2-1 Spurs – Premier League

‘To play Liverpool is always a motivation’

Despite having grown into the season week-by-week, putting together some fantastic performances and earning some important results, Liverpool have endured a disappointing run of form in the past month.

Currently on a run of five league games without a win, the Premier League’s reigning champions trail leaders Manchester City by seven points. Since defeating Crystal Palace 7-0 on 19 December – a result which at the time consolidated their place at the top of the league table - they have since fallen away from the summit with draws in games against West Bromwich Albion, Newcastle United and Manchester United plus two 1-0 defeats against Southampton and Burnley – the latter result seeing them fall to their first loss at Anfield in 68 games. The Reds have only scored two goals in their last 450 minutes of league action. Meanwhile, on Sunday, they were knocked out of the FA Cup by Manchester United following a 3-2 defeat at Old Trafford.

Despite their difficult run, Jose Mourinho sees a team in Liverpool who are still creating plenty of chances and so he knows, no matter their recent form, they will always be a dangerous foe.

“To play Liverpool is always a motivation, especially in the last years where they were dominant in our league, winning in Europe – an amazing team. So, it is a good motivation to play them,” Jose explained.

“They didn’t score goals in some matches, but the chances were there. When a team creates chances, you have to believe that, at any time, they can score. In fact, in the last match, they went to Manchester United - they saved some players, like they didn’t risk (Joel) Matip or (Jordan) Henderson. They are a top team.”

We, meanwhile, are unbeaten in eight games in all competitions coming into this encounter and are yet to suffer defeat in 2021. In this relatively new calendar year, we have played six games to date – five of them we have won while the remaining game we drew. In those outings we have scored 18 goals and conceded just three.

In the last year, we have also remained unbeaten at home against the ‘big six’ sides. Out of our last five such games against those teams, we triumphed in four of them while we drew the other. Our last home defeat against a ‘big six’ side, coincidentally, came at the hands of Liverpool at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in January, 2020 (1-0).

Taking the form of the two sides into account as he spoke ahead of the clash in N17, Reds boss Jurgen Klopp expects his charges will face a difficult task, but he is still hopeful that they can find a way to take something from the game.

“In this moment, we go game by game,” Klopp said. “(At) Tottenham, do you think it's impossible for us to get something there? No, probably not, I don't know. Is it difficult? Yes. That's with all the Premier League games, the same, and we just have to make it happen. That's how it is. It's difficult, I know, but we will try, we will see.”