Both Man City and Tottenham started the Premier League campaign strongly this season. Pep Guardiola’s squad crushed hosts Wolves 4-0. This was the biggest win in the opening round of the 2025-2026 Premier League, something few expected from the Sky Blues after their performance last season. Meanwhile, Spurs defeated newcomers Burnley 3-0. This has made the clash between these two teams in Round 2 the main focus for English football fans.

From their performance against Wolves, Guardiola’s team showed many positives. Most notably, new signing Reijnders integrated perfectly. The Dutch midfielder scored once and assisted another in Man City’s win. Reijnders excelled as most of Man City’s attacks went through him. Another newcomer, Cherki, also scored. Additionally, Haaland shone as usual. The quick adaptation of these new signings is boosting Man City’s confidence ahead of hosting Tottenham.

Man City’s recent form is particularly impressive. They are the only team unbeaten since April (8 wins, 2 draws). Their solid defense is the foundation, with the Citizens keeping 7 clean sheets and facing an average of only 7.6 shots per game.

For Spurs, this season they parted ways with Korean captain Son, but in the match against Burnley, Brazilian forward Richarlison stood out in attack.

Tottenham is the opponent Man City dread facing in the Premier League. Pep’s team struggles against sides that excel in defensive counterattacks, and Spurs are very effective in quick transitions.

Throughout his career, Spanish coach Pep Guardiola has lost to Tottenham 9 times, second only to Liverpool (10 times).

In the last 12 Premier League meetings between the two teams, Tottenham holds the advantage with 6 wins and 4 losses.

In this match, new manager Thomas Frank will face Man City. Notably, when coaching Brentford previously, Frank often troubled Man City.

Frank made headlines by leading Brentford to a 2-1 victory over Man City at Etihad in November 2022. Historically, only Mourinho and Conte have beaten Guardiola away with two different teams. Frank has a chance to join this exclusive list.

In the past 10 years, Man City has lost more matches to Spurs than any other Premier League opponent. Across 25 encounters in this period across all competitions, Man City won 11, Tottenham 10, with the rest draws. In the last 12 matches, the Citizens have 6 wins, 1 draw, and 5 losses.

Last season, Tottenham defeated Man City twice, including a 4-0 win at Man City’s home and a 2-1 victory in the Carabao Cup.

In this match, Man City holds the advantage playing at home at Etihad. Tottenham has only won 2 of their last 9 away games.

The Premier League Round 2 marquee match between Man City and Tottenham will kick off at 18:30 on August 23rd.

Expected starting lineups for both teams:
Man City: Trafford, Lewis, Stones, Dias, Ait-Nouri, Reijnders, Gonzalez, Silva, Bobb, Haaland, Doku.
Tottenham: Vicario, Porro, Romero, Ven, Spence, Sarr, Gray, Bergvall, Kudus, Richarlison, Johnson.

Premier League Round 2 Schedule 2025-2026:

August 23rd

18:30: Manchester City vs Tottenham Hotspur.

21:00: Burnley vs Sunderland.

21:00: Brentford vs Aston Villa.

21:00: AFC Bournemouth vs Wolverhampton Wanderers.

23:30: Arsenal vs Leeds United.