One a few days ago, it seemed the season was fading for Tottenham Hotspur; however, a win, coupled with some friendly results, have buoyed Spurs’ chances of finishing in the top four.
After three straight losses in all competitions, including a Premier League defeat to Wolves, Tottenham Hotspur’s hold on fourth place was slipping. However, on Saturday, with a few results going their way, including their own, Tottenham put themselves back in a prime position for finishing fourth and capturing the final Premier League place in next season’s UEFA Champions League.
Tottenham took care of business on Saturday afternoon
After playing down to their competition in a loss to Wolverhampton, Tottenham Hotspur was determined not to let it be four straight defeats in all competitions. Although Richardson’s strike past Keylor Neves did not count, the warning shot had been fired, and Spurs were starting to purr.
The end of the game did leave something to be desired, with Spurs conceding a goal and a penalty kick, which could have made the last few minutes hairy, had Fraser Forster not come up with a big save. Nevertheless, the key was that Tottenham got three points against a team they were supposed to get three points against, which has not happened on more than one occasion this season.
With three more points, Tottenham moved up to 48 on the season, just one behind third place Manchester United, although the Red Devils have two games in hand. Suddenly the idea of finishing third is not entirely ludicrous; however, the logjam behind Spurs is something Tottenham needs to keep an eye on, and they received a bit of good fortune on Saturday.
Results went Spurs’ way on Saturday
Of the five teams immediately chasing Tottenham for fourth place, three of them played on Saturday, and none of them took all three points, with only Brighton managing a single point in a draw with Leeds.
Liverpool, who looked destined to be tied with Tottenham after the early game, lost to Bournemouth 1-0, just one week after putting seven past Manchester United. The loss and Spurs win leave Liverpool six points adrift of Tottenham, albeit with a game in hand.
Brighton still has three games in hand on Spurs; however, after taking only one point at Elland Road, Albion will have to win all three to pull level with Tottenham. Certainly not impossible, but a difficult task for any team.
Further back, Brentford’s loss leaves the Bees a full 10 points back of Spurs, making their two games in hand much less dangerous.
Games still to be played will finish painting this week’s picture for Spurs
Results were good on Saturday; the question is if they will hold for Spurs as the weekend continues. Fulham plays Arsenal on Sunday, and even if the Cottagers take all three points, which we hope they do, they will still sit six points back level with Liverpool on 42 points. The difference is that Liverpool still has a game in hand; Fulham will not after Sunday.
Besides Liverpool, the team most dangerous to Tottenham is Newcastle, with the Magpies seven points behind Spurs with three games in hand. On Sunday, Newcastle hosts Wolves at St. James Park, with a win pulling the Magpies past the Reds into fifth place, just four points behind Spurs with then two games in hand. Maybe the Wolves will continue their winning ways after last week against us, but I’m not holding my breath.
We do know that after Saturday, only Newcastle is mathematically ahead of Tottenham, where their games in hand would put them in front of Spurs. Of course, games in hand are not the same as three points in the bag, and we will find out Sunday how much some of those games in hand are worth. For now, Tottenham has strengthened its hold on fourth place.