Tottenham Hotspur could be 13 points behind Manchester City by the end of the weekend.
Mauricio Pochettino seemed to surrender Tottenham Hotspur’s title hopes when he admitted to ESPN that the gap to Manchester City is “massive” after Saturday’s 1-1 draw with West Bromwich Albion.
Dropping two points to the Baggies at Wembley, where Harry Kane cancelled out Salomon Rondon’s early opener, means that Spurs could be 13 behind Pep Guardiola’s Premier League leaders by close on Sunday.
Considering City’s unstoppable form and Tottenham’s recent struggles – they have failed to win three of their last four league games – that deficit is likely to get bigger between now and January 6th, 2018.
Jose Salomon Rondon of West Bromwich Albion scores his sides first goal against Tottenham
Why that date? Because that is FA Cup third round weekend, and a chance for Spurs to start trophy hunting.
As the Daily Mail reports, Pochettino played down the importance of the FA Cup earlier this season, but the Spurs boss must rethink if his team’s title challenge looks as dead as it does now come the New Year.
With the Champions League not back until mid-February, there is no excuse for Pochettino not fielding his strongest team in the early rounds of the FA Cup and seeing where the run might take Tottenham.
Spurs supporters are desperate for some silverware and want to take the FA Cup seriously, and a rough last-16 draw in Europe might make it the only trophy that Spurs are competing for come the spring.
Pochettino and his squad also need the belief of winning a trophy under their belts. If that is not going to be the Premier League this season – which is looking increasingly likely – then he must target the FA Cup.
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