ESPN Soccernet Preview: Tottenham v Sunderland

• Live on ESPN2 at 10.00 ET

Two sides that have spent big in 2009 meet at White Hart Lane on Saturday looking to bolster their respective European ambitions. Tottenham, having won their opening five games of the campaign in all competitions, have now lost to Manchester United, Chelsea, Stoke and Arsenal. Sunderland have enjoyed some good results so far, but have taken only two points from nine since their beach ball-aided win over Liverpool.

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Harry Redknapp was quick to quell talk of a blip.

For Spurs' part, Harry Redknapp bristled at suggestions their Champions League hopes now look unrealistic in the aftermath of the 3-0 defeat in the North London derby. "People will question us getting into the Champions League, but it's nice proving people wrong in life," he said. "I'm not giving up on the Champions League." Redknapp pointed to the absence of Luka Modric, Aaron Lennon and Jermain Defoe and insisted six or seven teams will contest the top four places this season.

If they are to prove themselves contenders, they will have to show they can bounce back from bad results and beat sides like Sunderland. Yet Steve Bruce spent a decent amount in the summer, not least in buying strikers Darren Bent and Fraizer Campbell (who have both worn the white of Tottenham), and they will feel they are always capable of victory as they look to become Europa League contenders. However, Sunderland face a significant problem in central midfield on Saturday: captain Lorik Cana is suspended and both Lee Cattermole and Boudewijn Zenden are injured.

Tottenham player in focus: Jermain Defoe. Available once more having served his suspension following his red card against Portsmouth, Harry Redknapp highlighted Defoe's absence as a key factor in Tottenham's recent defeats. He has been taking his chances this season and, after losing 1-0 at home to Stoke despite having the better of the game, his return will be very welcome.

Sunderland player in focus: Darren Bent. One of four former Spurs players likely to feature on Saturday along with Fraizer Campbell, Steed Malbranque and Andy Reid, Bent appears the most likely to make the headlines after recovering his form at Sunderland, even if he appeared to have lost his touch during the 2-2 draw with West Ham last week. With Harry Redknapp having famously claimed his "missus could have scored" after Bent missed a chance last season, the striker will no doubt be keen to prove a point.

Key battle: Ledley King v Darren Bent. Bent is likely to be the major threat to Spurs, and the fact that Jonathan Woodgate is an injury doubt will put plenty of pressure on King to stand up to the challenge - something he did not manage against Arsenal. Bent's pace and power are always dangerous and Harry Redknapp may have cause for concern if either of his centre backs have injury niggles.

Tactics: Both sides are almost certain to play 4-4-2, but injuries in midfield make it difficult to predict exactly how the teams will line up and how the managers will approach the game. Sunderland may struggle for bite in the absence of Lee Cattermole and Lorik Cana while Spurs could be lacking a creative edge as Luka Modric and Aaron Lennon remain sidelined. Both sides will surely attempt to use the pace of both Bent and Defoe as a means of unlocking the opposition defence.

Quotes: Peter Crouch on how the side must respond to the Arsenal defeat: "We'll pick ourselves up. We've had a good season so far and can't let that kick us back down. We have enough ability in the dressing room to kick on, starting against Sunderland."

Fraizer Campbell on Kenwyne Jones' suspension and facing his old club: "Obviously it's opened up an opportunity for me, but I was gutted for Kenwyne when he got sent off. It will be good to see the lads again, catch up with some familiar faces but, at the same time, it'd be even better to come away with the three points."

In the news: Steve Bruce says there is no bad blood with Tottenham over the Darren Bent deal. Bent famously hit out at Spurs through his Twitter account, but Bruce feels there was "a lot of nonsense" written in the press about the deal and that things were "blown out of proportion". Still, keep an eye on DB10 "The Truth" for anything inflammatory before the game.

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Darren Bent will be fired up for the game.

Tottenham team news: Luka Modric has resumed light training but remains some way away from a return, while Aaron Lennon is still struggling and is not expected to feature. Jonathan Woodgate could be back in contention after suffering a head injury in the defeat to Stoke, but Sebastien Bassong is out with a hamstring problem.

Sunderland team news: Kenwyne Jones is suspended after his push on Herita Illunga in the 2-2 draw with West Ham, and Lorik Cana is also out after picking up a yellow card in that match. Lee Cattermole remains a long-term absentee despite Steve Bruce suggesting he could return sooner than expected, and John Mensah and Bolo Zenden have also been ruled out due to injury. Fraizer Campbell is expected to play despite missing the West Ham match with a hamstring problem.

Probable Tottenham line-up (4-4-2): Gomes, Corluka, King, Woodgate, Assou-Ekotto, Bentley, Jenas, Palacios, Kranjcar, Keane, Defoe.

Probable Sunderland line-up (4-4-2): Gordon, Da Silva, Ferdinand, Turner, McCartney, Malbranque, Henderson, Reid, Richardson, Campbell, Bent.

Soccernet prediction: While both sides have injury problems, Tottenham perhaps boast greater strength in depth and, on home turf, you would expect them to take the three points and maintain their challenge to claim one of the Champions League spots.