The expression topsy-turvy comes to mind when analysing Tottenham Hotspur’s first half of the 2022-23 season, with Antonio Conte’s side conjuring up goal-laden performances and surprise defeats in equal measure domestically and continentally.
Prior to the World Cup, Conte witnessed his Tottenham side win just three of their last eight competitive fixtures, but one of those successes confirmed their place in the last 16 of the Champions League, and a return to San Siro to face AC Milan now awaits for Conte.
The Lilywhites also ran out 4-3 victors over Leeds United in their most recent Premier League showdown to enter Christmas fourth in the table, albeit eight points adrift of bitter rivals Arsenal having played a game more than the runaway leaders.
Injury after injury to a wealth of attacking players have not done Spurs any favours, but they eased past Motherwell 4-0 in a training ground friendly two Fridays ago, with Matt Doherty netting twice alongside strikes from Dejan Kulusevski and Bryan Gil.
Owing to their early EFL Cup elimination at the hands of Nottingham Forest, Tottenham do not return to competitive duties until their trip to Brentford in the Boxing Day set of Premier League fixtures, and they welcome Nice to North London aiming to score four goals for the third game in a row.
Speaking of four goals, Lucien Favre’s steadily-improving Nice side made the net ripple that exact number of times in a dominant friendly win over Standard Liege earlier this month, but subsequent fixtures with Girona and Atalanta BC ended in dismay.
After succumbing to a pair of injury-time goals in a 2-1 defeat to Girona, Les Aiglons were put to the sword in convincing fashion by Atalanta, who struck through Rasmus Hojlund, Duvan Zapataand Jeremie Boga in a dominant three-goal success on Friday.
Results in winter friendlies should not go down as blots on the notebook of Favre, whose side went through their last seven competitive games unbeaten to rise to ninth in the Ligue 1 table, having posted an identical set of five wins, five draws and five losses so far.
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A consistent ability to breach their opponents’ defence has not always made up for Les Aiglons’ defensive deficiencies this term, though, and Favre’s side – who are a far cry from the defensive masters they were under Christophe Galtier – also failed to qualify for the knockout stages of the Europa Conference League.
Tottenham and Nice have only ever locked horns once in the past, with the Lilywhites running out 1-0 victors in a 2006 friendly, and a surprise win would be the perfect tonic for the visitors before they resume Ligue 1 duties against a high-flying Lens later this month.
The World Cup period has not been a kind one to Tottenham in terms of injuries, as Rodrigo Bentancur (adductor), Ben Davies (abdominal) and Richarlison (thigh) all occupy beds in the Hotspur Way treatment room and are unlikely to play any part on Wednesday.
None of the trio is likely to spend a significant amount of time on the sidelines, but Ryan Sessegnon is yet to overcome the knock he picked up at Nottingham Forest, and the quartet of Emerson Royal, Lucas Moura, Clement Lenglet and Fraser Forster are also said to have sustained small issues that prevented them from playing against Motherwell.
