Can Harry Redknapp’s Spurs continue their charge forward?

• Things look bright for Spurs, who face Everton, Wolves and Wigan at home, then travel to City, Liverpool and Arsenal

Nearly every one of the leading teams has wobbled over the holiday period, some more than others. Starting at the top, Manchester City actually experienced two away games in which they didn’t score a goal. They only managed a 0-0 draw at West Bromwich Albion, and then were defeated by a late goal at Sunderland.

Roberto Mancini’s frustration at the end of this game was evident to see: He could hardly speak at the press conference.

Manchester City were undone by teams with a similar approach. Both Roy Hodgson at West Brom and Martin O’Neil at Sunderland are keen to stress the importance of keeping the shape of their team so players don’t stray out of position.

This may sound obvious, but it does mean you put in more energy than the opposition, with each player constantly running to make sure that the set position is maintained.

City’s subsequent game against Liverpool was seen as a big test. Liverpool were regarded as more of a threat than either of their two previous opponents, even if Manchester City were at home.

In fact, this game turned into a 3-0 stroll as City returned to their previous pattern of crushing opponents with ease.

That game confirmed what is now apparent to all but the most biased Liverpool fans: Kenny Dalglish’s return has not been the immediate success many had hoped. Not only that, but the terribly mishandling of the Luis Suarez – Patrice Evra affair has cast the whole club in a shameful light.

City pile pressure on United

Manchester City’s win against Liverpool put pressure on their nearest rivals, Manchester United who played away at Newcastle the following evening. In their previous game at Old Trafford, a scarcely believable win for away side and bottom of the league Blackburn had been the outcome.

That game could be dismissed as a one-off; Blackburn had certainly worked incredibly hard. But their success had been in part due to a long injury list – the loss of Fletcher in midfield and Vidic in defence is particularly keenly felt.

While teams must expect injuries during the course of the season, in this campaign Sir Alex Ferguson’s men have been especially prone to time on the treatment table.

Also, more and more the lack of a decent midfield is becoming evident at Manchester United. Against Newcastle, Carrick and Giggs were simply outplayed, and looked to have heavy legs. The 3-0 win for Alan Pardew’s men was a fair reflection on the difference between the two sides that night.

How fans must wish the much-talked of transfer of Wesley Sneijder had happened in the summer. Indeed so large is the desire to strengthen the midfield that there has even been talk of Manchester United signing Frank Lampard from Chelsea.

This is nonsense: Chelsea won’t sell him (the fans wouldn’t allow it) and Lampard wouldn’t leave (he doesn’t want to go). Anyway he is a player in decline, albeit from a great height and with good performances left in him (if not consistently so), as he has recently shown.
There will be some comfort amongst Manchester United fans that neither Chelsea (who lost at home to Aston Villa) nor Arsenal (who were beaten by a late comeback by Fulham at Craven Cottage) could take advantage.

Both these sides also have clear weaknesses. Chelsea are often spoken of as being in transition as the old guard of Lampard, Terry and Drogba pass their prime. But this doesn’t address what may be their biggest challenge. It doesn’t seem as if Andre Villas-Boas is quite ready for the scale of a job at a leading Premiership club.

Certainly AVB isn’t prepared for an owner who has such massive ambitions together with a notoriously low tolerance threshold when it comes to managers. You succeed at Chelsea immediately or you leave seems to be the message.

Arsene Wenger doesn’t have that problem at Arsenal. What he does have is a thin first team squad. If Arsenal’s first choice team are available, they are as good as any team in the Premiership. They proved that much when, even with injuries they gave Manchester City as good a game at the Etihad Stadium as any Premiership teams have done in the last year.

But an injury can mean replacements amongst the back-up players who are nowhere near the same standard. Last season Arsenal suffered with the absence of Thomas Vermaelen for nearly every game. His recent injury, while not rated as so serious, again exposed the Gunners to the charge that they lack depth.

One side has barely wobbled over the last few games: Tottenham Hotspurs. Harry Redknapp’s team are on a great run of form that has seen them come close to closing the gap between the top two and the chasing pack. Indeed, a win against Everton in a rearranged fixture this Wednesday will see Tottenham draw level on points with Manchester United.

One comparison between these two sides that favours Tottenham is the midfield. From those players currently available, only a fool would choose the Manchester United midfield over the Tottenham one. Bale, Modric and Van der Vaart are an exceptional combination, and they have Aaron Lennon to return from injury.

Things look bright for Tottenham. Their coming Premiership games, as well as Everton, see them face Wolverhampton Wanderers and Wigan at home; all seem very winnable games. And indeed Tottenham must win these as they have to travel to Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal before the end of February.

At the same time, at the end of January there is the scheduled court appearance of Harry Redknapp on tax evasion charges. Redknapp may not be the one who takes training sessions at Tottenham, but as a strategist during games he has few equals. Losing their manager for anything more than a brief spell may pose a halt to Tottenham’s march to the top.

When not thinking about football, Guy Maughfling (Facebook Group: “Premiership Chat”) is a director in PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Advisory business in East Africa. The views expressed here are his own.