Tottenham Hotspur regained momentum after defeat at Brighton in midweek and returned to winning ways with a 3-1 victory over Bournemouth.
Manager Ange Postecoglou has completely changed the mood at the club after a spectacular start to the 2023-24 season.
Spurs’ improvement is surprising considering they lost Harry Kane in the summer.
Their latest 3-1 success over Bournemouth means that they are only 3 points away from the top of the table.
Postecoglou’s men started the season by managing to not taste defeat in the English Championship, albeit with tough games against Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool, before a series of injuries and suspensions to key players such as Micky Van de Ven, James Maddison, Cuti Romero, Destiny Udogie, Yves Bissouma and others put an end to a brilliant start to the Ange Postecoglou era.
Both an impressive start to the campaign and a brilliant comeback after a mid-season setback have sparked debate about whether Tottenham can surprise and win the Premier League title.
Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville is impressed with Spurs but does not believe they have the quality to win a first title in more than half a century.
Asked whether Tottenham are potential winners, Neville told Sky Sports: “I don’t think they are.
“I believe that will sort itself out in the next few months, but if for some reason the rest of the teams are not quite there and if Tottenham, who are not in Europe and not in the Carabao Cup, keep their players in good shape, they could have an outstanding season.
“If they are up there and in the game in January, why not try to strengthen the squad a little bit so they can compete for the win, because if City are not quite there or if Arsenal slip up, why not compete for the win?
“But I don’t think they have a good enough squad or they are not a good enough team to win the league. But what they are doing at the moment exceeds all expectations of where they could be. Postecoglou is doing a great job for them.”
Kane’s summer departure suggested Tottenham were in for a difficult campaign, but they have achieved fantastic results with Postecoglou’s attacking football.
However, in my opinion, it may still be too early to talk about them being Premier League title contenders, as this season has been about developing and rebuilding the squad after the new management let go of some of the old legs and deadwood.
Manchester City have lost three games in the English Championship this season but are still favourites to defend their crown.
Arsenal are also in the mix, having brought in Declan Rice, Jurrien Timber and Kai Havertz after a summer of spending. Meanwhile, Liverpool lead the way with an impressive 42 points after just 19 games of the campaign.