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Bearing in mind injuries, I suspect Hughes will go with:

.............Given

Richards Toure Lescott Sylvinho

.........Kompany Barry

Tevez........Ireland........Robinho

.............Adebayor

I guess he might give Petrov a go if he thinks we are going to be predominantly playing on the break.

I do worry about us coping with Crouch in the air and Lennon on the right, particularly as neither Petrov nor Robinho are noted for tracking back, so it's also possible that Kompany (if De Jong is fit) or Onouha could be used in central defence and Lescott moved over to left back.

I think in many ways Spurs are quite similar to us. They are very strong going forward and not so great defensively.

It's an important game and one that could go either way. We need to close them down quickly and not give them too much time on the ball to pick out their forwards. Ultimately I feel that the game will be won by the team whose defence copes best and unfortunately I see their defence probably being better able to cope with our threats than vice versa.

Spurs possible weaknesses -

1. Left-back - is a problem for them. If SWP was fit, he could do some damage here. Otherwise, I'd be tempted to give Weiss a go. The other alternative is Ireland, of course, but I prefer him in a central position for this game. At right-back, Corluka is decent, but he can be beaten more by pace than guile - cue Petrov?

2. Huddlestone - is a liability defensively. If Bellamy and SWP were available for the flanks, I'd consider putting Robinho behind Ade to bamboozle Huddlestone, but unfortunately that won't be an option, so Ireland might be a more balanced choice. Tevez is in great form, so between him and Stevie I expect that they can prevent Huddlestone from distributing the ball and force errors perhaps.

3. Palacios - is not playing well, so if 'Arry picks him, it could play into our hands. I'm not sure on the status of Modric - he's the one Spurs midfielder that really concerns me.

Spurs Strengths -

1. Defoe - I'm not confident about Toure and Lescott's ability against quick, tricky players like this. We need a reducer early doors on the striker and ...

2. Lennon - could do with a gentle reminder, too. Sylvinho impressed me vs. Bolton, though. He seems like he has the mental tools (although not the pace) to deal with the likes of Lennon - we'll see. If Lennon switches flanks, Richards has the opposite set of skills to Sylvinho - lots of athletic ability, but not the quickest thinker around.

3. Crouch - is a wildcard, you never know quite what your going to get. Spurs have a lot of height even without the 6'7" striker, and it may be providence that Kompany gets another go after his so-so performance on Saturday - Crouch likes to come deep and flick diagonal balls on to Defoe/Keane, so Vinnie's stature may prove useful.

We'll know pretty quickly how this one is going to go. Stevie Ireland's a certainty to start this time, and if we see him stood off behind the centre circle I'll start chewing my nails right then and there. Sylvinho is wily enough to sort Lennon out despite the difference in pace. If de Jong's fit I'd put him on Defoe, and tell the rest of the defence to earn their keep and take whatever they throw at us.

As far as our forwards are concerned, and I know some will disagree with me, it doesn't seem to matter who we put out there so long as our midfield push forward and link with them. Push forward and we win, sit back and we draw (Yes, yes, I know - we would have lost last year, doesn't matter - we lose points). I'd probably play Ade, because he does seem to stir himself against London clubs, and Robinho. And Petrov, because without SWP we need to get some width out there to stretch them. We can win this.

Sorry about the lengthy preview, but it was a threesome this one - Thanks to Bloovic, Phuket Blue and Wigan Blue. It's a shame nobody was prepared to predict the result! I predict goals and a 1-3 win for City, somebody is due to get a pasting from us, it may as well be Spurs.