3. Tottenham (Played 20, Points 42)
SOME exceptionally good players have been performing somewhere near the peak of their ability this season and so much has been based on the back five-six. In Hugo Lloris, they have one of the finest goalkeepers in the world; Toby Alderweireld has arguably been the best centreback in the league this season; while Kyle Walker and Danny Rose continue to go from strength to strength. Dele Alli’s ability at such a young age is astonishing and Harry Kane has shown no sign of being a flash in the pan. It had been quite some time since Spurs were involved in a title fight when they fell away at the crucial moment last season and eventually finished third. In reality, it was nothing less than anyone expected — Spurs will habitually stumble at the final hurdle. Whether they can banish the doubters remains to be seen. Is there another manager in the Premier League who has been lauded more than Mauricio Pochettino? The Argentine’s stock rose rapidly at Southampton and has only continued in the same direction since moving to White Hart Lane in 2014. His presence has proven a key factor in convincing many of the big names to sign new deals. Erik Lamela aside, Spurs have been blessed with a fit and healthy squad for the majority of the season so far. The mood at Spurs could scarcely be better after ending Chelsea’s winning streak with a great 2-0 win. That victory took their own perfect run to five Premier League matches and, ignoring the Champions League debacle, things are looking up. Despite being dumped out of the Champions League, Spurs’ midweek games are showing no sign of slowing with a draining Europa League campaign due to start in February. The taxing nature of the competition is bound to take its toll if they get to the latter stages. 6. Manchester United (Played 20, Points 39) ONE of the stronger defences of the big six teams, and in Zlatan Ibrahimovic arguably the stand-out striker in the Premier League this season. United have struggled to break down massed defences this season and have thrown away a number of points in home matches. The transitional nature of the past few years has also left the team looking disjointed at various points, with new signings taking time to settle. After revealing how much he was battling to settle in Manchester, José Mourinho said this week that “I love my group so I’m really happy”. He certainly appears to have been finding his feet at United, with seven straight wins a big relief after a slow start. Wayne Rooney and Luke Shaw are out but are expected back sooner, and besides long-term cruciate ligament victim James Wilson, United have a clean bill of health. Buoyant. A run of seven victories in all competitions has transformed the mood at Old Trafford and Ibrahimovic illustrated the increasing optimism by claiming on Monday that United could still win the league despite being 10 points off the pace. United are still in the Europa League, which will mean a return to the ThursdaySunday cycle in February. Mourinho though insists the cup competitions are not a distraction, which is lucky because United are also in the League Cup semifinal and yesterday began their FA Cup campaign against Reading. Of the current squad, eight players have Premier League-winning experience, and the likes of Paul Pogba and Ibrahimovic have won plenty of titles abroad. Mourinho has also won every English competition as a manager and he will hope to bring that experience to bear with a team that has won just one trophy in the previous three seasons. Ibrahimovic. The striker is United’s top scorer this season with 18 goals, 12 more than Pogba and Juan Mata, who have the next most. Michael Carrick also deserves a mention for the way he has transformed the team since starting to play regularly again in November. Not a lot. Last season was the first time that a fairly young Spurs squad had been involved in a title race and things did not go well — few Tottenham supporters will care to recall their disastrous encounter with Chelsea late on in the season. If Lloris decided to up sticks and leave White Hart Lane, it would be an enormous loss for the club, but there is no one more important than Kane. Home grown and a Spurs supporter from a young age, his unifying presence at the club is almost as important as the goals he bangs in with amazing regularity. The thinking among many Spurs fans is that, while those players who occupy the bench are fine at filling in briefly when required, the majority are not up to scratch if asked to replace an injured player in the long term. Are Ben Davies, Georges-Kevin N’Koudou, Kevin Wimmer and Moussa Sissoko going to win any team the Premier League title? Probably not. And the less said about Vincent Janssen the better. There was no bigger match last season than the trip to Stamford Bridge at the start of May and the 2-2 draw that followed killed all hopes of winning the title. This year, Spurs have not fared too badly against the big sides, taking eight points from six matches including this week’s perfect 2-0 victory over Chelsea. Pochettino is yet to lose a home London derby, and Arsenal’s visit to White Hart Lane at the end of April could prove crucial to the title top-four race. Manchester United then follow a fortnight later. The ability is there, but the resounding feeling where Spurs are involved is one of pessimism. If something can possibly go wrong, it will go wrong. — BB OUTSTANDING: Zlatan Ibrahimovic United have a lot of options, and Mata in particular has been very effective coming on as a substitute. The likes of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Marouane Fellaini are also very useful options. Mourinho has typically excelled in the biggest matches, but this season United are joint bottom of the top six mini-league. The 4-0 defeat at Chelsea will have particularly concerned the manager. United play Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham in their final six matches, by which time they could have closed the gap on the teams in front of them and then be left with their destiny, to an extent, in their own hands. The recent renaissance has been impressive but 10 points off top spot and five teams above them will prove to be too big a challenge. — CE