Tottenham v Swansea: Spurs to scrape more pace-setting points

While Tottenham brace themselves for the official departure of Gareth Bale, the fact of the matter is that the club have been preparing for life after the Welshman from the moment he spanked the ball into the top bag against Sunderland on the final day of last season.

Whether his Real Madrid move is completed or not by the time kick off rolls around at White Hart Lane, it will have no effect on the Spurs’ players’ mindset and this makes their 4/6 to beat Swansea an excellent price.

After getting walloped by Manchester United on the opening day, a trip to the capital’s bronze medallists from last term isn’t what you’d call favourable and there’ll be few willing to dance with their ugly-looking 9/2 for victory. The draw is another unattractive waltz partner at 11/5.

The only thread of hope that the Swans – who have savoured just one league away win in 2013 – can hang onto as they bid to prevent the tiny fire that two successive opening league defeats is likely to ignite, is that in three of their four Premier League meetings with Spurs, both sides have found the back of the net.

While they’ll be few backing against AVB’s side with their new-fangled front line bagging at least once, this gives their Welsh counterparts cause for optimism regarding their own ability to find the back of the net and, should they restrict Spurs to just one goal, they stand an outside chance of pinching a point here.

Ladbrokes have both teams to register in this clash chalked up at 8/11 and it’s well worth a punt based on recent history.

However, using Spurs’ maiden outing of the current campaign as the yardstick, the winning margins market could be where the best value is lurking.

Including their 1-0 victory at Crystal Palace, Spurs have now been involved with 11 games that have been settled by a solitary strike either way from their last 15 outings.

Tottenham, whose new attacking roster is adjusting to life in England and their new manager’s approach, to win by one goal has to be the bet to go with here, paying out at a princely 14/5.

All odds and markets accurate as of publication’s time and date