Piggy in the Middle

It is one thing to discover that there is a company that sells piggy banks in the colours of professional football teams, but an all together stranger thing to find Tottenham move temporarily into 2nd place.   Liverpool as a team with the money they have spent (near to £170 million this year) and Manchester City were expected to be team that win the league.

According to Sky Sports Klopp and Mourinho have expended similar outlays for new players that border £400 million since the Summer of 2016.  Compare that to Tottenham who spent nothing this summer and have netted a surplus i.e more money coming in from transfers than going out. 

As Wolves beat Spurs today by the score of 3-1 it showed the limitations of Tottenham to achieve something significant over the long haul (because Wolves deserved their win once their midfield general João Moutinho came on to play in the second half).

City's next game is against Southampton (whose honeymoon period with their new manager looks like it is coming to a quick end).  The last thing Southampton need is a reminder that they are in a relegation battle, especially against what amounts to be a wounded tiger this weekend.   If Spurs are going to finish second this year, it will be more probable at the expense of Liverpool than it is at the expense of Manchester City, though who can bet against Liverpool with their unbeaten start - yet we should remember when Liverpool a few years ago choked under the pressure when they were just one win away from the title.

Klopp like Pochettino has a high-intensity style that will be particularly draining for both Liverpool and Tottenham as the season comes to a close, whereas Pep has Manchester City playing efficient and highly effective football, more deadly and clinical by simplifying passing and creating movement that stretches teams, if not befuddles them.  Unlike Liverpool, City and to a lesser extent Chelsea can still command and attract the worlds best players - and Manchester United are in this category also if they were not 19 points behind Liverpool already this year.

While it was nice to see Tottenham demolish teams 6-2 and 5-0, these are not top six teams.  The acid test will come quickly in January with the visit of a resurgent Manchester United team now unshackled and now absolutely free of Mourinho's defensive game plans, playing the Alex Ferguson way under their new caretaker management.

In today's loss against Wolves, it seemed clear that Trippier was a huge liability as a Tottenham right back defender. His limitation was not obvious when Spurs dictated the game and took a 1-0 lead but once Moutinho came on and Wolves came on the front foot - it seemed Wolves could score at will.   Teams like Manchester City might still sit 3rd with the game against Southampton still to be played, but these teams are not going to give more gift losses and that is what makes Liverpool the team that looks more resolute, far more resolute than one that might crack as they did in 2014.

The loss against Wolves is Spurs 5th defeat this season but what is keeping Tottenham in the title hunt is not drawing any game - it seems it is a win or bust for them so far but even then it is very strange to see any team play 20 games and not draw any of them.  With 3pts for a win, the difference between a draw and a loss is not that much of a difference, but losing against a fellow Top 6 team is critical.  if Spurs had beaten Liverpool at home, they would have been level on points with them - that is how much those matches count.  Liverpool have two of those games - one later today at Anfield against an Arsenal team that has drawn far too many times and then an away trip next week against Manchester City.  Those two match up's is what makes today's home loss against Wolves really damaging for Spurs.

Ironically, this is the kind of game that could have done with Jose Mourinho's win ugly philosophy - and while he failed at Chelsea and Manchester United in recent years, he failed because the ego's of the team became greater than his ego, which is not a problem he will encounter with this Tottenham team.  So if Pochettino does go to Manchester United, that is what the irony can be - that Mourinho may end up giving Tottenham the metal and spine and means to kill off games (that are definitely not what Tottenham fans want to see) but end up giving a team the disposition and mentality that makes them a title contender for real rather than just a piggy in the middle team.