Simon Stone
BBC Sport at the Etihad Stadium

Christian Eriksen is not here tonight but his presence is still being felt.

His picture is in the programme and they are talking about him on the tannoy.

Thomas Frank has labelled his fellow Dane 'Brentford's greatest signing'. He is probably right.

Another pinch yourself moment for fans who have followed the club on their journey from League Two.

Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace have won only one of their 10 Premier League away fixtures this season but that a was huge 2-0 victory at Manchester City in October.

Their 3-0 victory against Norwich on 28 December was their only win in six Premier League matches.

Jonathan Woodgate
Former England defender on BBC Radio 5 Live

I have seen Rodrigo Bentancur play for Boca Juniors and Juventus. He is a real top centre-midfielder. He can pass long and short. He's more defensive than attacking but will give Tottenham real balance in the middle of the pitch.

Saying that, the Premier League is a different proposition to Serie A. He has 47 caps for Uruguay so is a top player, but it takes a bit of time to acclimatise. The football in the Premier League is quicker.

He will pick it up but Harry Winks and Pierre-Emile Hoejbjerg have done all right together, so he will have to wait for his chance.

Crystal Palace

Michael Olise has both scored and assisted in three of his last five appearances in all competitions.

Image source, Getty Images

Norwich City

Norwich last won three Premier League games in a row in December 2012.

They are hoping for number three again today...

Jeremy Goss
Former Norwich midfielder on BBC Radio 5 Live

Norwich performances have changed under Dean Smith. There is more energy. All the players seem to have been given a chance. Smith has been unlucky as he has not had a full squad to choose from but this evening you have got nearly his best team.

Teemu Pukki is obviosuly the main man up front but also Adam Idah is coming on strong. He has got a great reputation. The last two games Norwich have been brilliant in getting the results they need to take them out of the bottom three and there is a real buzz about the place.

Norwich City

Teemu Pukki has not scored in the Premier League in 2022.

He scored five of Norwich's eight Premier League goals this season before the turn of the year.

Image source, Getty Images

Norwich City have only won two of the past 20 league meetings. Both victories were 1-0 at Carrow Road, in 2007 and 2013.

Crystal Palace are unbeaten in six Premier League matches against Norwich.

However, Palace's solitary victory in their last six Premier League away games against Norwich came on the opening weekend of the 2015-16 season.

Palace have earned 47 league wins in this fixture, more than against any other side.

Brentford

Image source, Christian Eriksen Twitter

Thomas Frank says Christian Eriksen is settling into life as a Brentford player, but still gave no indication of when we might see him feature for the Bees.

Eriksen completed his first training session with his new team-mates on Monday, which Frank says was a special moment to witness.

"It was very good to see him out there. I spoke to him after the training and he was just pleased and happy to be part of a team and club again and do what he loves the most.

"We know he is a humble, down to earth, quality player, but he’s coming in with that natural presence without being big-headed. Because of the way he is he’s blending fantastic with the group and the culture we have here."

When asked if he has a timeframe in mind for when Eriksen might feature, Frank said: "Ish. It’s of course something we will constantly speak with him about. One thing for sure, he will not play against Manchester City but let’s take it day by day.

"We want to hit that perfect balance where we push him, of course, but also he needs to be in a good place because he hasn’t trained with a team for seven months.

"It’s important that we don’t give him a minor injury and give him a setback, even though he has a strong foundation to stand on. He’s looking good, but we also need to get some match minutes into him in a friendly before we put him out there."

They used to play on Christmas Day??

Bring it back, I say. Just make sure fixtures don't clash with The Snowman.

Brentford

Image source, Getty Images

Brentford are in trouble.

Thomas Frank's side have lost five games in a row in all competitions, conceding 16 goals.

The Bees have lost five of their six away matches against Manchester City in all competitions, with the exception being a 2-0 top-flight triumph on Christmas Day 1937.

Manchester City

This is a lovely story.

A young football fan whose video of her being hugged by Jack Grealish went viral has described the moment she met her hero as "amazing".

The Manchester City star met 14-year-old Abbie and her mum Zoe at the Etihad before City faced Fulham in the FA Cup.

Grealish saw Abbie as he arrived at the ground's reception before signing her shirt and leaning down to her wheelchair to give her a big cuddle.

Abbie said the experience was "amazing" and added: "He smells really nice."

Her mother Zoe said: "It was amazing, it was just absolutely brilliant. I was crying, Abbie was crying, all the staff were crying.

"For Jack to take the time out to come over to her, I've just never experienced as much joy in my life as I did at that moment.

"I can't thank him enough for what he's done for her."

Read the full piece

Manchester City

Image source, Getty Images

Manchester City are currently running away with the Premier League title and you can see why from the standards they have set themselves.

Pep Guardiola's have not dropped points in consecutive league fixtures in 49 games since December 2020.

They have won the last 19 Premier League games in which they took the lead.

Manchester City

Image source, Getty Images

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has defended some of his players after they were filmed on a night out.

Footage on social media showing Jack Grealish, Riyad Mahrez and Kyle Walker outside a venue in Manchester.

"The video didn't show exactly what happened - dinner together, sober, enjoying [time] with their mates and some of the backroom staff," said Guardiola.

"But they will be fined because they didn't invite me!"

Grealish and City team-mate Phil Foden were warned by Guardiola over their conduct in December after they were pictured on a night out after City's 7-0 home win over Leeds United.

However, on this occasion, the City manager did not have an issue with his players going out.

"The players know there is a risk when they go out today because of social media but all of them - Riyad, Kyle, Ally (Marland, staff), Jack were perfect," added Guardiola.

Asked if his players get unfairly treated, the City boss said: "In this case, yes."

Michael Brown
Former Manchester City midfielder on BBC Radio 5 Live

We are still wondering about what type of Spurs side we are going to get going forward. There is still a feeling there is a lack of continuity in terms of results - win some and lose some.

There has been some improvement but there is a long way to go. They have to understand the manager's demands.

Will Conte accept that they are not going to win every game or will he throw his toys out of the pram? They are still some way behind the top two or three.

Southampton

Image source, Getty Images

These numbers don't make for good reading...

Southampton have gone 11 league matches without a clean sheet and conceded multiple goals in 18 of their past 22 away league fixtures.

They have let in an unrivalled 198 Premier League goals since Ralph Hasenhuttl's first game as manager in December 2018.

For some reason, I've never thought, 'oh yes, lots of hard work. I am really enjoying this'.

On the other hand, Emma will have the same work ethic as Ben Davies. Grafter.

Tottenham Hotspur

Image source, Getty Images

Tottenham defender Ben Davies says he is "loving" the hard work under boss Antonio Conte and believes the top four is the "minimum target" this season.

Spurs are at home to Southampton in the Premier League this evening and a win would take them within one point of the Champions League places.

"The amount of work we're doing is significant - but it's enjoyable stuff," he told 5 Live Breakfast. "You feel like you're doing it with a purpose.

"The top four is the minimum target we set ourselves and we've got some winnable games in hand.

"We've got to target wins in our two home games. If we do, we put ourselves in a great position for the final bit of the year."

Tottenham Hotspur

Image source, Getty Images

Tottenham have turned their form around under Antonio Conte and are bang in contention for a top four spot.

They have won all six home league matches this season against teams currently in the bottom half of the table.

Son Heung-min has been directly involved in 12 goals in 12 league games against Southampton, scoring nine and setting up three.