• Competition: Carabao Cup
• Date: Wednesday, 18th September, 2024
• Kickoff: 20:00 UK / 21:00 CEST
• Venue: Coventry Building Society Arena (Coventry)

On Wednesday evening, a Championship side, Coventry, will welcome Premier League team, Tottenham, in the Carabao Cup 1/16 Finals at Coventry Building Society Arena in Coventry.

After Coventry almost reached the Premier League in 2022/23 when they lost to Luton in the Playoff Finals on penalties, everyone expected a strong next season from them. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case, as "The Sky Blues" finished 9th - nine points away from the Playoffs. To be fair, they were good throughout the season, but after winning just one point in the last six games, they blew the opportunity to secure Playoffs. On the other hand, they had a great run in the FA Cup, where Manchester United eliminated them in the Semi-Finals after a penalty shootout in a super-exciting game where Coventry overcame a three-goal deficit. This year, "The Sky Blues" are hoping for a better season in the Championship, but also another good run in the Cup competitions. While the start in the Championship was poor, winning five points in five rounds, they did well in the Carabao Cup, eliminating two Championship sides, Bristol City and Oxford United.

Last year, Tottenham finished 5th, just two points away from the Champions League. Even though the Spurs' fans had high hopes with coach Ange Postecoglou, we believe they lack the quality to compete with the best teams in England. Over the Summer, they did spend money but focused on young upcoming players, which aren't good enough to make them a real contender, in our opinion. And indeed, the season started terribly, as the Spurs sit in 13th place with just four points in four rounds.

Coventry vs Tottenham pick: Under 3.5 goals

Coventry were excellent for this type of bet this season, as they were under 3.5 goals in six of seven games in all competitions - 86%. It seems they have problems with efficiency as they scored zero or one goal in six of seven matches this year. So, scoring against a Premier League side could be a massive challenge.

Tottenham are in terrible form. They lost back-to-back games against Newcastle and Arsenal and scored just one goal. Even that goal was an auto goal by Dan Burn. To be fair, they are not playing poorly and are creating goal chances but struggle to convert them. If we take a look at xG, they are second in the Premier League with 1.92, only 0.06 fewer than Manchester City. Still, they only had one good offensive game - against Everton, which is totally out of form right now.

Tottenham are undoubtedly a better team, but we do not trust them to win this match and cover the -1/1.5 AH spread because they might rotate the squad. Considering both teams' poor offensive performances in most of their games, an under 3.5 goals bet should be the safest option for this Carabao Cup game.