Tottenham Hotspur tasted their first defeat of the new Premier League campaign last weekend. Their performance in the three games this season has been anything but impressive and many believe that they no longer have the quality to compete for the league title.
The same rhetoric was made public by Paul Merson, who went on to claim that they are surely out of the title race, after losing to Newcastle United at home last week.
In his column for Sky Sports, Merson said, ”I must admit, I didn’t see this coming – Tottenham losing at home to Newcastle. Spurs look in disarray, a worrying sign this early in the season,’.
‘They are out of the title race already, five points behind Liverpool with three games played. That may sound harsh, but would you back Spurs to win the league over Liverpool if Liverpool had a five-point head start?’’ he added.
Does Merson Have A Point?
While many call this take on Spurs’ title chances reactionary, Merson does have a point in his criticism. As the former Arsenal man explained in his column, the lack of urgency and quality all around the field in the loss to Steve Bruce’s men showed a lack of hunger among players.
Mauricio Pochettino also claimed that he has not seen his squad as unsettled as it is now, in his time in London and it is clear why Spurs are struggling.
It is not just the points they dropped against The Magpies. Spurs just got over the line against Aston Villa on the opening day, were lucky to take anything from their trip to Etihad and have just not been their usual selves this season.
Their loss of form may have actually started late last season. Spurs have won just four of their last 15 league games and have conceded the first goal of a game in each of their last five outings.
They are a side that usually like to dominate games and win at a canter but Spurs now look like a side with too much baggage that is stopping them from moving forward.
The additions of Ryan Sessegnon, Giovani Lo Celso and Tanguy Ndombele will certainly lift the spirits at the club. If they can retain all their players beyond the deadline day in the European transfer window, the feeling around the squad could also be more settled.
But at the moment, Spurs look like a side who could even struggle to compete for a place in next season’s Champions League.
Will They Struggle For Top Four?
Erik Lamela has been preferred to Christian Eriksen in a creative midfield role this season while Dele Alli is nursing an injury. Heung Min-Son is just back from suspension while Lucas Moura has looked out of form.
As already mentioned, the likes of Sessegnon (injury) and Lo Celso (match fitness) are yet to make an impact on the squad and could make Spurs a stronger outfit this season when they will operate at their full capacity.
But it is crucial for Pochettino to get his side back playing as a team. The chemistry between players in different areas of the field has been a cause of concern for Spurs and if the manager can solve these issues, Spurs could still be a force to reckon with.
They have dropped five points already this season and will need an incredible run of wins for the rest of the season to have a say in the race to the title.
But at the moment, it is too early to completely rule them out. A win the North London Derby next week and the whole mood around the club could change along with headlines in Sky.
If you’re asking an ex-Arsenal pundit like Merson to be objective about Tottenham’s title chances I think you’re pretty much always going to get an answer that is tainted with a lack of real objectivity. I think with Ian Wright on the other hand you are at least more likely to get straight up honesty rather than abjectly biased views! Honestly after a mere three games I think it’s fair to say that he (Merson) is jumping the proverbial gun here, with such a flagrant and outrageous knee jerk reaction that you can safely say that its exactly because he’s talking about Tottenham that makes him so ill-qualified to be making valued judgements in these regards. Granted Tottenham haven’t exactly come out of the blocks flying free, but one win, one draw, and one loss is hardly a cause for doom mongering when anyone with the slightest of football knowledge realises that the season beginning often throws up strange and awkward results. I don’t believe there is honestly much point in assessing any teams potential truly till around xmas time when at least by then a more rounded pattern of success or failings has begun to emerge. Its a little pathetic really that Pundits like Merson really are unable to put aside there own preferences or prejudices to call things objectively in their analysis of the game and this is sometimes why ex-footballers make really poor pundits.