Spurs on verge of setting embarrassing new record | OneFootball

Tottenham Hotspur are on the verge of becoming the first club in Premier League history to win eight of their first 10 games and then finish fifth or lower.

LONDON, ENGLAND: Ange Postecoglou, Manager of Tottenham Hotspur, looks dejected during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal FC at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on April 28, 2024. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

Following Tottenham Hotspur’s latest defeat to Chelsea, Ange Postecoglou’s side are on the verge of missing out on Champions League football next season.

Midweek results have guaranteed that England will only receive four Champions League spots this season, as opposed to the five many predicted earlier in the campaign, so Spurs would need to finish in the top four to qualify.

As it stands, Postecoglou’s team sit seven points behind Aston Villa with just one game in hand and four games to play.

More than that, Spurs still have to face Liverpool at Anfield and host Manchester City, on the back of consecutive defeats to Newcastle United, Arsenal, and Chelsea.

By contrast, Villa face Liverpool at home, and their other two fixtures are against Brighton and Crystal Palace.

LONDON, ENGLAND: Kai Havertz of Arsenal scores his team’s third goal during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal FC at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on April 28, 2024. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

It’s getting increasingly difficult to see a world where Spurs sneak into fourth, and if they fail to do so, they’ll set a new Premier League record.

The Athletic reported back in October that no team has ever earned eight wins from their opening 10 matches of a 20-team Premier League season and gone on to finish lower than fourth.

Spurs won the first eight games of the current campaign, and they’re on course for fifth – if that. Manchester United, Newcastle United, and Chelsea are all still mathematically able to catch up.

Tottenham Hotspur’s Dejan Kulusevski reacts after missing a shot during the English Premier League football match between Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, on April 28, 2024. (Photo by BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images)

Perhaps it’s unfair to suggest that Spurs have fallen off in recent months. Maybe the reality is that they were just never as good as they thought they were.

The Athletic pointed out in October that Spurs had face seven teams in the bottom half in their opening 10 games. And even when they were winning, they weren’t always particularly convincing.

There was the VAR-error win over Liverpool, the 100th-minute 2-1 victory over now-relegated Sheffield United, an own goal that gave them a win over Crystal Palace, and a Jorginho error that gifted them a draw at Arsenal. All in those first 10 games.

Spurs’ April and May fixture list has been much more difficult, and their luck has finally dried up. Their steady decline shouldn’t be much of a surprise.