Spurs ready to Kane Blues
> Tottenham out to reduce gap at the top to one point and tighten screws on Chelsea <
HARRY KANE says Tottenham plan on making Chelsea squirm this weekend as his title chasers look to pile pressure on the leaders with a win against West Ham today.
With Chelsea not in action until Monday’s clash with Middlesbrough, Mauricio Pochettino’s second placed side can temporarily move within one point of top spot if they beat the Hammers at the London Stadium.
Tottenham know the affect the schedule can have after they regularly followed Leicester during last year’s run-in and finally crumbled to hand the Foxes the title.
So far, they have coped admirably with the anxiety of having to play their fixtures after Chelsea, responding to victories by the leaders by beating Crystal Palace and Arsenal in their last two games.
This weekend, Kane and company, winners of their last nine League games, go first and the Tottenham striker is determined to seize the chance to turn up the heat on the Blues.
“We just have to try to finish strong. We’ve got another game Friday night and it’s good to play first,” Kane said.
“Hopefully we can drop the gap to one point and then see what happens.
“We know what it’s like from when Leicester were playing last year before us, and even today, that it’s good to play first and put the pressure on.
“It’ll be a tough game away from home but hopefully we can get that win, put the pressure on and just wait and see.”
Tottenham will play at Wembley next season while their new stadium is completed and Kane is certain his emerging young team are destined for great things no matter where they call home.
“Every time we drive in as a squad now you can see how big that stand is getting. Everything is getting built up and it shows the way the club is going,” Kane said.
“We’ve got a fantastic manager, he’s one of the best in the world in my opinion, we’ve got a great squad with a real togetherness.
“We’re just going in the right direction. We can’t get carried away, even this season we’ve got four games left to try to win and it’s exciting times.”
With his side seven points above the relegation zone, Hammers boss Slaven Bilic had demanded a strong finish to move into mid-table in their remaining games against Tottenham, Liverpool and Burnley.
“We need more points, it may be enough,” Bilic said.
“We don’t want to come into the last game of the season with the radio on and keep asking ‘what is the score there?’
“We would love to avoid it. We are not panicking but we are not safe.
“There are nine points to play for and we need to pick up more.”
Chelsea start as clear favourites against second-bottom Middlesbrough but they will have noted the fighting spirit shown by Boro in their 2-2 draw with fourth-placed Manchester City on Sunday.
In the battle for Champions League qualification, third-placed Liverpool are at home on Sunday to Southampton while fifthplaced Manchester United take on Arsenal, in sixth.
Manchester City will expect to get back to winning ways, after three games without a victory, when they host Crystal Palace tomorrow.
Sam Allardyce’s team, however, are unlikely to roll over as they still need points to secure their safety after their home loss to Burnley last Saturday.
At the bottom of the table, Hull City will be hoping to pull further away from the drop zone when they face already-relegated Sunderland, while Swansea, in 18th and two points adrift of the safety zone, face a tough home game against Everton. – AFP/Reuters