DUNN

FOOTBALL’S BEST COLUMNIST FROM WEMBLEY

day being a remotely thrilling experience, maybe they should not.

More than likely, it was a lot livelier inside the IKEA down the road than it was inside Wembley.

Tottenham’s record is not bad here – it is now eight wins and four defeats in the league this season – but it is a soulless existence that cannot end soon enough.

That their displacement has dragged on way longer than anticipated is one of those disadvantages Pochettino has had to combat.

Along with not signing a player in two consecutive transfer windows, of course.

Which is why the recent scepticism about his progress has been harsh.

Don’t forget, they had a decent crack at the Carabao Cup and were eliminated from the FA Cup by Premier League opposition in a tie played away from home. Now, they are part of a triumvirate that has broken away from the other three in the Big Six.

Even if the title does, indeed, prove out of reach, that is still no mean feat, particularly when you consider that he is now operating without England men Harry Kane and Dele Alli. They were missed against a resolutely defensive Newcastle, but, just as they did against Watford in midweek, Spurs and Pochettino found a way to win.

And despite being dormant in the market, when you can bring on the likes of Fernando Llorente, Danny Rose and Eric Dier, the squad is not too shallow.

Whether it is deep enough and good enough to increase momentum in the Premier League, while also facing up to their Champions League challenge, is debatable.

And Pochettino may be more focused on keeping that cushion to the fifth-placed team.

After all, his detractors say, he sees a top four-place as a trophy. Maybe. But if he keeps grinding out victories such as this one, he might – as fanciful as it seems – answer those detractors in the most emphatic way imaginable.

Poch needs a trophy to warrant his place in the bracket of elite club managers