Tottenham is alone in first place on nine points as the Premier League comes to the first international break, however, Spurs are far from title contenders at this point.
Following the win over Watford, Tottenham has nine points from three matches which is fantastic and definitely better than the alternative being faced by our North London neighbors. However, despite being the only unbeaten team and only team not to concede yet, Tottenham is still far from being a title contender at this point. This does not mean we should not enjoy our team being on top of the table, we just need to keep a level head about it. Here are three big reasons, anyone that mentions the title needs to immediately be shut down.
Reason 1: Spurs offense lacking that consistency
Thus far with just three goals from three games, there are 12 teams in the league that have more goals than does Tottenham. 17th place Newcastle has scored more goals than have the Spurs with four although they only have a point to show for it. Likewise, Southampton and Leeds have both scored four goals, yet sit seven points behind Tottenham in the standings.
More concerning than the teams at the bottom that have more goals than Tottenham are the teams directly behind the Spurs that seem to be scoring for fun. Both Chelsea and Liverpool have doubled the Lilywhites with six goals apiece.
Everton and Manchester United have both done those pair one better with seven goals each on the season. Then we have Manchester City and West Ham United who have both been on fire with 10 goals through three games.
Tottenham’s shutout of mighty Manchester City shows the defensive organization can carry the team at times. However, over the course of the long season, there are going to be games and stretches where the offense has to click and carry the squad. Until we see that same consistency in the attack as we have seen in the defensive organization, the Spurs are not title contenders.
Reason 2: The Spurs schedule is about to pick up
Although Tottenham did have two Europa Conference League matches during the first month of the season, the real grind is when you start to do that same routine again and again. Add in a third front in terms of the Wolves and the Carabao Cup and suddenly there are a lot of matches.
Tottenham returns to action with the afternoon match on 11 September at Crystal Palace in the first of seven games over 22 days. That Palace game also happens to be the first of three straight London derbies in the league with Chelsea and Arsenal after Palace.
Between the first derby, the Spurs will travel to France to start their Conference League campaign. Then the League Cup after Chelsea, followed by a home match against Mura in the Conference League following Arsenal.
That string of matches ends with Aston Villa coming to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium before the October international break. Given Spurs may be without Giovani Lo Celso and Cristian Romero for possibly the first three or even four of those matches, a relatively thin squad will be even thinner.
Different things make all the matches important for Tottenham
Other than themselves, Rennes is the best team in their group so getting points on the road against their likely biggest challengers for winning the group is important. Just like all those derbies are important. The bottom line is, absent more transfers coming in, this team is not that deep, and navigating the schedule as it picks up pace is going to get difficult.
If Tottenham is in this same position, top of the table, at the next break after Aston Villa, then maybe this conversation is different. However, even then it is just too early to think about the title.
Reason 3: The title is won in a marathon, not a sprint
Last season Tottenham was on top of the table for four weeks of the season, however, they still finished outside the top four. Alternatively, Manchester City was never higher than sixth place until week 17. The Sky Blues were not in the top four until week 18 and finally climbed into first place in week 20.
Week 20 is two weeks past the midway point and is the kind of time you can start possibly dreaming about the title. At that point in the season, you can actually start to see trends. Just three weeks into the season, while you see some things, the sample size is just not big enough to start drawing informed conclusions.
While too early to conclude, we can see that Tottenham is very organized defensively and that organization has vastly improved the defensive execution. The team has struggled to find the net but if you keep putting up clean sheets at least you will not lose.
More importantly, the defense has not been stressed and stretched the way it was last season, which hopefully means these performances are not a mirage and are the foundation of something real.
For now, we can all enjoy being alone at the top of the table, but please keep a level head.