Postecoglou set to rip up winning blueprint in bid to down City again

IT IS practically unheard of for a manager to deliberately rip up a tried and tested winning formula, but that is exactly what Ange Postecoglou will do at Manchester City on Sunday.

- Dan Kilpatrick

Tottenham have developed a highly successful blueprint for facing Pep Guardiola's City, which has established them as an irritating bogey team for the champions.

City have lost five of the clubs' last seven meetings in the top flight - and memorably went down over two legs in the 2018-19 Champions League quarter-final- and in the last four-anda-half years five different coaches Mauricio Pochettino, Jose Mourinho, Nuno Espirito Santo, Antonio Conte and Cristian Stellini - have spearheaded Spurs wins over Guardiola's sides.

With the notable exception of Pochettino's team, all of Spurs's recent wins over City have come with a remarkably similar approach: they have allowed Guardiola's pass-masters to control possession, defended deep and in numbers and counter-attacked at speed, usually through Harry Kane and Heung-min Son.

Mourinho was in charge for the 2-0 home wins over City in February and November of 2020, while Nuno oversaw the 1-0 victory in north London on the opening day of the 2021-22 season, when Spurs were without Kane.

Conte was head coach for the 3-2 win at the Etihad in February 2022 and Stellini was in the dugout (albeit covering for Conte and not in sole charge at that point) for the club's last meeting, Spurs's 1-0 home win in February, when Kane became the club's all-time leading scorer.