In the past 2 seasons, Tottenham have finished runner-up to the Premier League winners. They’ve been branded as the ‘nearly’ team, the team that’s put pressure on the eventual winners without actually getting close. Many thought that this would be the season where Spurs finally reach the mount summit, instead, they won’t be getting any closer.
Here are 5 reasons why Tottenham won’t win the Premier League this season.
#5 Other teams are now aware of their threats
Spurs have only won 2 games out of 9 at Wembley
The element of surprise will not work in the favour of Tottenham this season. The work Mauricio Pochettino has done at White Hart Lane has been nothing short of a revelation, nobody expected the Argentinean to not only close the gap between Spurs and Arsenal but exceed it. He’s transformed Spurs from a joke into a top 4 club, but all that could be undone this season.
Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. Tottenham have taken the league by storm over the past few years but now teams will be treating them as a title contender and not just a medium-sized club. Low blocks and parked buses will be present at Wembley this season, a stadium that they already have enough problems with playing at, to begin with.
#4 Others are stronger
Tottenham have won one of their last 15 trips away to the big six clubs.
Tottenham are a good side, but the other big six clubs are just stronger. This year Jose Mourinho will be having his 2nd year at Old Trafford, everyone knows he performs better in his 2nd season at a club because he learns from his previous mistakes. Pep Guardiola has also now had time to adjust to the conditions of the Premier League, he’s also been able to spend £216m to mould the team to his liking. Arsenal have also strengthened, leaving Tottenham in a 4th placed battle for Champions League qualification. This year Tottenham will not be as lucky as they have in the years before, as everybody’s ready to finally compete.
#3 No signings in the summer
Tottenham have spent £0 this summer.
For some strange reason, Tottenham Hotspurs haven’t made one signing this summer. After finishing 2nd in back to back years, Mauricio Pochettino’s men were in the perfect position to push on and then mount a serious title challenge.
One or two more signings and Spurs could have been fully equipped to win the Premier League this season, instead, they look set to fall out of the top 4. On top of that, the North London club lost their best full-back to Manchester City, thus strengthening their title rivals.
If Spurs had kept their whole starting XI and then added a competent 2nd striker and an explosive winger, they would have been set to win the Premier League for the first time in their history.
#2 They have Champions League football
Tottenham last qualified for the Champions League in 2010
For one of the first times in history, Tottenham will be playing amongst the elites of Europe. Pochettino will now have to find a way to ensure his team are not just there to make up the numbers like Arsenal, but there to compete with the best. The only problem is that Tottenham’s squad depth may not be ready for such a competition.
Everyone knows how good Tottenham’s starting XI is, on its day it can compete with anyone. However, when you delve further into their squad depth, their substitutes are hardly competent. A bench that consists of; Vincent Janssen, Kevin Wimmer & Harry Winks is hardly going to strike fear into the hearts of Barcelona and Bayern Munich. Tottenham will struggle to compete on all four fronts with the limited squad depth they have today, making the logic not to sign players, even more, the stranger.
#1 Kane & Alli can’t do it alone
Last season the exploits of two Englishman carried Tottenham all so close to the finishing line. Last season in a combined 67 PL appearances Dele Alli and Harry Kane provided 47 goals and 14 assists for Spurs. That’s a partnership that can’t be replicated by many in world football and such a constant rate of productivity cannot be sustained forever. One day one of the duo are going to have a lapse in form and clearly, none of the rest of squad are fit to step up.
In the 2016/17, Spurs’s backup striker Vincent Janssen only scored 2 goals in 27 appearances, is that the man that Pochettino expects to step up when Harry Kane has a dip in form? Think again.
