Manchester beware: Spurs are now real contenders for title

11 April 2012

If the Manchester clubs remain clear favourites to contest the Premier League title given City's form and United's pedigree, then Tottenham now appear as well equipped as any of the chasing pack to bridge the gap.

Spurs brushed Aston Villa aside with so much style and authority that it becomes tempting to interpret their ascension to third place in the table as a platform rather than a pedestal for their season.

The football on show last night was reminiscent of those wondrously entertaining occasions under the lights at White Hart Lane when it took the might of Real Madrid to halt a stirring run of Champions League performances.

They broke new ground in Europe but whenever a fresh path is trodden, there is a nagging sense reality will inevitably deflate fantasy and the established order will return.

It is this cynicism that breeds caution in declaring Tottenham capable of sustaining a title challenge but the arguments against such an occurrence are wearing thin. Harry Redknapp has proved himself capable of smashing glass ceilings. The top four appeared a closed shop for so long and yet Spurs followed by City have remodelled the top of the English game.

So why not a shot at the biggest domestic prize of all? Emmanuel Adebayor, as he proved against a woeful Aston Villa side, can fill the void of a consistent match-winning goalscorer; the midfield quartet are a blend of pace, invention, energy and efficiency, while the defence are filled with combative and assured performers with William Gallas and Michael Dawson among others waiting in the wings.

What should at least be said is that Tottenham's quality is befitting of a side who should not peer tentatively at a top four place but believe themselves capable of becoming established there.

Where that takes them depends on their consistency and the fallibility of those around them. City brim with confidence and resilience but have yet to prove they can go the distance, United may have recorded five successive wins but still appear haunted by their derby day mauling while Chelsea are in a degree of disarray.

Liverpool confirmed their status as top-four contenders with victory at Stamford Bridge while Arsenal have recovered from a disastrous start in an impressive fashion and in Robin van Persie, they boast the deadliest striker in the League by a distance.

However, Spurs would retort that Gareth Bale is unplayable on occasions like this and Luka Modric - who may begin to view the denial of a move to Chelsea as a blessing - is a midfielder rarely equalled in the division.

All the contenders have question marks against them. Spurs do too, of course, but the answers to their uncertainties do not appear any more complex and eight wins from nine matches is an emphatic response to their own humiliation by City.

Redknapp is a master motivator able to simplify any challenge to shatter the most ingrained preconceptions and while it remains too early to gauge the ultimate strength of the title contenders, there are plenty of reasons to justify claims Spurs are among them.

"The title is a possibility," he said. "It's not impossible. When I came here I said I wanted to get in the Champions League and we did that. I don't want to start saying we're going to win the League because if you don't do it then everyone gets carried away.

"But it's not impossible for anyone. Last season Manchester United won it because everyone fell over. If we keep up the form we're in we'll win the League but that will be very hard.

"City aren't on a different planet to anyone else. They aren't going to go through the season unbeaten - they are not that good. They are worthy favourites but I wouldn't say they are certainties to win the League."

Spurs may still need to convince some of their credibility as top-four challengers but the message had clearly reached Birmingham. Alex McLeish's side employed a conservative approach with full-back Alan Hutton deployed in right midfield to stifle Bale and Emile Heskey on the left to bring greater physicality.

Neither worked and this proved heart-warming fare for Redknapp who admitted he had cut short his convalescence from heart surgery to take his place in the dug-out. There was little here to test his ticker. Rafael van der Vaart's corner was only cleared as far as Bale, whose scuffed effort fell to Adebayor, who contorted his body in acrobatic fashion to turn the ball past Shay Given.

Spurs purred in possession as Villa's commitment to containment was a policy watching Prime Minister David Cameron would have struggled to defend. Bale's delivery from the left was, for once, not particularly menacing but Given and James Collins made a hash of it, allowing Adebayor the simplest of tap-ins. Villa rallied after the break but Adebayor missed two good chances to seal it but in truth Spurs, boasting 70 per cent possession, were always comfortable.

Redknapp added: "There were no nerves, I was just looking forward to the game. It's the best medicine for me to watch the way we play."

Any attempt to anoint Spurs as London's premier contenders must wait at least until the outcome of Chelsea's visit on December 22 but the case is becoming stronger with each passing week.

A resurgent Arsenal will have their say but few sides look as settled as Spurs to take advantage of any slip from the leaders. City's next four League matches include clashes against Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal when their mettle will be tested. Spurs should be waiting to take advantage.

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