Mauricio Pochettino and Spurs can regain the winning knack

Tuesday Champions League preview: Free football betting tips and odds

19:45 · TUE November 21, 2017

David John says Tottenham can collect three Champions League points on Tuesday night when they travel to Borussia Dortmund.

Borussia Dortmund v Tottenham (1945GMT, BT Sport 3)

Spurs keeper Hugo Lloris has decided his team should give up on the Premier League title race after their defeat to Arsenal over the weekend and adjust their sights to a top-four berth.

Perhaps a bit of psychology to take some pressure off his team-mates after back-to-back losses on the road against two domestic big guns but a third on Tuesday night may lead to a few worried glances within the ranks.

Tottenham’s European situation is extremely healthy though, with them three-points clear on top of Group D and poised to progress as winners if they can match Real Madrid’s result at APOEL Nicosia.

Saturday’s trip to the Gunners was perhaps their worst effort of the season defensively as they looked sloppy on more than one occasion without the dominating presence of an injured Toby Alderweireld.

Pochettino did have a point however in his post-match interview with the build-up to the crucial Arsenal opener shrouded in some controversy after a free-kick was given for an invisible shirt-tug.

Of interest as well were the performances of Dele Alli and Harry Kane, who had both missed England call-ups with niggling issues, and neither seemed anywhere near the pace required for a north London derby before the pair were hauled off after 75 minutes with this game in mind.

So now is the time to successfully regroup and Spurs are worth supporting at 23/10 to get the better of a Dortmund side in all sorts of strife and in need of two victories in this competition to have any chance of moving through to the knockout phase.

A 2-1 defeat on Friday night at Stuttgart means the only success they have managed since the end of September was in the German Cup over third-tier FC Magdeburg to leave manager Peter Bosz facing mounting pressure.

Main striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang missed the Stuttgart loss due to 'disciplinary reasons' and will more than likely return to the fold but this is a team enduring a torrid time with no obvious end in sight.

"At some point we will turn things around," was the rather vague assessment from former Chelsea winger Andre Schurrle but I doubt it will come in this fixture at Signal Iduna Park.

The visitors won the reverse 3-1 at Wembley and can complete a double over the Germans to ensure they are top dogs ahead of the current holders of the trophy.

Prediction: Borussia Dortmund 1-2 Tottenham - Sky Bet scoreline: 10/1

Liverpool's Roberto Firmino

Best of the rest

Manchester City and Liverpool take to the field as well on Tuesday and the best wager from the respective fixtures is Roberto Firmino to score anytime for the latter at Sevilla.

Everyone (rightly) remains head over heels in love with Anfield summer arrival Mo Salah as he continues to bang in the goals while Philippe Coutinho is back in the good books for now following his protracted saga with a move to Barcelona.

Sadio Mane’s earlier return from injury than expected has also caught the eye so Firmino rather operates under the radar in a team packed with attacking verve and although eclipsed by Salah again, he delivered a lively performance in the 3-0 victory against Southampton in the Premier League over the weekend.

On target in the first meeting between these two in mid-September, he also managed to miss a spot-kick at a time when Jurgen Klopp’s frustrations with his side’s profligacy were at their zenith.

They seem to have discovered recently how to build a foundation from the back with just one goal conceded in their last four outings so the deadliest counter-attackers in Europe can thrive again with Firmino fancied to capitalise and get on the scoresheet.

Fans of Manchester City might disagree with me about who is swiftest from one end to the other after another wonderful example at the weekend finished off by Kevin De Bruyne at Leicester City.

Pep Guardiola and his rampaging unbeaten outfit take on Feyenoord with the Dutch side 25/1 to pull off a huge shock at the Etihad Stadium.

City brushed them aside 4-0 on Matchday One to totally knock the stuffing out of them with manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst overseeing just three wins since - two of those coming in the Dutch Cup.

They have managed no points in this competition and although City have huffed and puffed at times in showdowns with Shakhtar and Napoli (twice), this will surely be more straightforward.