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Europa League | Round of 16
Mar 11, 2021 at 8pm UK
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
DZ

Spurs
2 - 0
Dinamo Zagreb

Kane (25', 70')
Dier (45+2'), Sanchez (79'), Hojbjerg (85')
FT(HT: 1-0)

Ademi (69'), Ivanusec (77'), Ristovski (88')

Preview: Tottenham Hotspur vs. Dinamo Zagreb - prediction, team news, lineups

:Headline: Preview: Tottenham Hotspur vs. Dinamo Zagreb - prediction, team news, lineups: ID:438453: from db_amp
Sports Mole previews Thursday's Europa League clash between Tottenham Hotspur and Dinamo Zagreb, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Tottenham Hotspur will be looking to stretch their winning streak when they host Dinamo Zagreb in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 tie on Thursday evening.

Spurs have won four games in a row in all competitions, though opponents Zagreb have been in even better form of late, winning eight matches on the spin.


Match preview

Jose Mourinho's side appear to have turned a corner since the end of last month - not only in terms of results but also their performances.

The Lilywhites have won five of their last six, scoring 17 and conceding four during that run, which culminated in a 4-1 league victory against Crystal Palace on Sunday.

That was arguably Tottenham's most impressive victory of the lot, with Harry Kane, Son Heung-min, Lucas Moura and Gareth Bale linking brilliantly in attack.

Mourinho's decision to seemingly take off the handbrake has paid off and the Portuguese, who has won the Europa League/ UEFA Cup both times he has participated in it, will be hoping to maintain that momentum.

Spurs eased past Austrian minnows Wolfsberger in the last round, following up a 4-1 away win with a 4-0 victory on home soil, but this showdown with Zagreb will be a far tougher test.

The Croatian champions have been in ruthless form since the start of February, having won eight games from eight and kept seven clean sheets in the process.

Dinamo have won six games in a row in the Europa League, meanwhile, which is their best ever run in Europe, and are unbeaten in nine in UEFA's secondary competition.

Zoran Mamic's men were given a difficult time of things by Krasnodar in the last round, though Mislav Orsic's goal 30 minutes into the second leg sealed a 4-2 aggregate win.

Taking on Tottenham over two legs will be a step up for Zagreb, of course, and they have a poor record against English teams in Europe.

The Blues have lost nine of their last 10 such games, the exception being a 2-1 victory against Arsenal in the 2015-16 Champions League group stage.

Tottenham, by comparison, have won five of their seven previous encounters with Croatian teams, all but two of those meetings being against Hajduk Split.

Tottenham Hotspur Europa League form:
  • W
  • W
  • D
  • W
  • W
  • W

Tottenham Hotspur form (all competitions):
  • W
  • L
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W

Dinamo Zagreb Europa League form:
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W

Dinamo Zagreb form (all competitions):
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W


Team News

Giovani Lo Celso remains Tottenham's only real fitness doubt for this game, though Serge Aurier is unlikely to be risked after sustaining a knock.

Centre-back Joe Rodon will also play no part on Thursday as he was not registered in the Lilywhites' European squad.

Mourinho may have been tempted to field a stronger-than-usual side in the Europa League for this game, but Tottenham face rivals Arsenal on Sunday so changes can be expected.

Dele Alli, Eric Dier, Japhet Tanganga and Tanguy Ndombele are among those pushing for recalls, with the likes of Kane, Bale and Son likely to be given a breather.

As for the visitors, Sadegh Moharrami is their only known injury absentee for this trip to North London.

Bartol Franjic is back in contention after serving a ban in the second-leg win against Krasnodar, but Mamic may well go with the same XI that started that most recent European match.

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:
Lloris; Tanganga, Alderweireld, Dier, Davies; Hojbjerg, Ndombele; Lamela, Alli, Bergwijn; Vinicius

Dinamo Zagreb possible starting lineup:
Livakovic; Ristovski, Lauritsen, Theophile-Catherine, Gvardiol; Ivanusec, Jakic, Orsic; Ademi, Majer; Petkovic


We say: Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 Dinamo Zagreb

Mourinho is expected to make changes to Tottenham's starting lineup with next weekend's North London derby in mind, but the hosts should still have enough quality to see off Zagreb.

That said, the Croatian champions are in superb form and, assuming they field a full-strength XI, they will be tough to break down - as highlighted by the seven clean sheets they have kept in their last eight games.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a home win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Home Win:data




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