Tottenham Hotspur target the top of the Premier League table if they can beat West Bromwich Albion on Sunday, November 8. The North London club sit just two points behind Liverpool and Leicester City in third position heading into the weekends’ games.
Tottenham Hotspur Target Top of the Table
Spurs Going Strong in the League
Once Everton beat Spurs on the opening day of the Premier League season 1-0, critics were quick to suggest that they were heading for a season of failure. That defeat was a blip and since, Tottenham have gone from strength to strength. Impressive wins over Manchester United and Southampton stand out along with grittier wins over Burnley and Brighton & Hove Albion. Winning ugly is not something that has been generally associated with Spurs but Jose Mourinho is changing that mentality.
‘Spursy’
Having been 3-0 up against West Ham United only to capitulate in the final ten minutes and draw 3-3, Jose Mourinho was quick to deny that it was ‘Spursy’ in his post-match press conference, as reported by The Guardian:
“No stories about ‘Spursy’ and this kind of thing. We just need to defend better from set-pieces”
The term ‘Spursy’ is one that has been linked to Tottenham over the years due to their failure to take advantage of promising situations. FA Cup and League Cup semi-finals have resulted in disappointment, as well as defeat in the 2018 Champions League Final to Liverpool. Whilst reaching these stages of competitions and top-four finishes in the Premier League, the final hurdle constantly seems to be a game too far.
Winning the Ugly Way
In the Amazon Documentary, ‘All or Nothing,’ which followed Spurs from the sacking of Mauricio Pochettino through to the end of the season with Jose Mourinho in charge, Mourinho made it clear that his charges were ‘too nice’:
”Teams of good guys, they never win,” he said. The Portuguese was making a clear point that as good as the team is, they need to be tougher, especially from a mental perspective.
A win at West Brom would start to answer those critics who still feel Spurs are not tough enough to win titles. There is still a long way to go in the season but going top of the table, even for a short while would be a good way to start making the point that Spurs can achieve success.
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