Sky Sports will show 64 live Premier League games when season resumes; 25 matches available on both Sky Sports Premier League and Sky's free-to-air Pick channel
Friday 3 July 2020 18:37, UK
The Premier League is back - but what shape are Tottenham in for the season restart?
Ahead of the Premier League's return, Sky Sports looks at how Jose Mourinho's side will fare, from fixtures and fitness to the manager's view and more...
Tottenham - on the back foot when football was suspended by the coronavirus pandemic - have a huge amount of work to do to qualify for next season's Champions League.
Spurs are eighth in the table, seven points behind fourth-placed rivals Chelsea, and four behind Manchester United in fifth place, which is also set to be a Champions League slot given Manchester City's current ban, pending appeal.
On the face of it, their nine-game run in looks less daunting than it might, with only Manchester United - their first game live on Sky Sports behind closed doors on June 19 - and arch-rivals Arsenal their traditional top opponents remaining.
But they also face Champions League-chasing Leicester, Sheffield United, who are deservedly in the hunt for Europe, and two sides battling against relegation in Bournemouth and another local rival in West Ham.
Newcastle and Crystal Palace away will not be easy either, while they also host Everton at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
It's make or break for Jose Mourinho's Tottenham as a tumultuous season for the club reaches the final stretch.
Rally behind Mourinho and show how good they can be - as they have in certain games since he replaced Mauricio Pochettino - and they can qualify for next season's Champions League, and kick on with the rebuild from there.
Fail to do so, however, and even finish in the bottom half, and they could face an even more difficult summer transfer window than expected, as Mourinho tries to build a team capable of taking Spurs to the next level.
With a fully fit squad, there are no excuses to turn to either: will this squad play for their new head coach? And will the system he wants to play get the best from them? An interesting and crucial nine games lay ahead for Spurs.
Lyall Thomas
Tottenham v Manchester United
Kick-off: 8.15pm; live on Sky Sports
Tottenham v West Ham
Kick-off: 8.15pm; live on Sky Sports and Sky Pick
Sheffield United vs Tottenham
Kick-off: 6pm; live on Sky Sports
Tottenham vs Everton
Kick-Off: 8pm; Live on Sky Sports
Bournemouth vs Tottenham
Kick-Off 6pm: Live on Sky Sports and Sky Pick
Tottenham vs Arsenal
Kick-Off: 4.30pm; Live on Sky Sports
Newcastle vs Tottenham
Tottenham vs Leicester
Crystal Palace vs Tottenham
Technically, Tottenham can still finish second but their principle objective will be to recover seven points on Chelsea and finish fourth, guaranteeing Champions League football next year.
However, modelling by Experimental361 gives them just a 10 per cent chance of finishing in the top four.
A more realistic aim would be to finish above Manchester United in fifth, which all-but guarantees a Champions League spot too, and beating United in their opening game of the restart would go a long way to achieving that. It would be a real statement from a team that was suffering in March.
Worryingly, if they do not pick up better form, Spurs could finish in the bottom half of the Premier League table - which they have not done since 2008 under Juande Ramos.
Mourinho's side were dumped out of the Champions League by RB Leipzig in their last game before the lockdown, and are not in the FA Cup either - so being able to solely focus on the remaining nine league games is in their favour.
The key issue behind Tottenham's slump in form before the pandemic was a string of injuries to key players; notably their talisman Harry Kane.
The 26-year-old has been out since New Years Day - just as they had begun to gather momentum - after suffering a serious hamstring injury that required surgery. But he is said to be raring to go and feeling fitter than ever.
The absence of Moussa Sissoko in midfield and Ben Davies at left-back had also been a blow to Mourinho's preferred system, but both players recovered in March and will be available for the restart.
Dele Alli has been suspended for the United clash however, over his social media post about coronavirus back in February.
There also remains a question mark over Jan Vertonghen and whether he will agree to stay at the club beyond the end of his contract on June. Third-choice goalkeeper Michel Vorm has agreed to stay for July.
Spurs were on an awful run of six games without victory in all competitions before the suspension of competitions, three of which were in the Premier League and included bitter defeats to rivals Chelsea and at home to Wolves.
Before that they had won three games on the trot, including what had appeared to be breakthrough victory over Manchester City, and they will be looking to pick up on this vain rather than the other when they return.
There were also question marks over the personal form and fitness of several key players, especially new signing Tanguy Ndombele. He was called out by Mourinho after a terrible defeat at Burnley and the manager has been working with him ever since to try to restore his confidence.
He has been considering his future at the club during lockdown, but if he can begin to show his obvious potential, Ndombele could have a sizeable effect on how Spurs fair in the run-in, while the form of fellow newcomers Steven Bergwijn and Giovani Lo Celso is also cause for optimism.
Mourinho has expressed excitement football is coming back but, after so many injuries before, stressed caution about rushing players back who have barely played any football in many months.
"I think we shouldn't be selfish, we shouldn't demand too much," he said. "It's our time to give.
"For example, when players play Euros and World Cups, they barely have a holiday, they don't have pre-season, they come direct from holiday and sometimes they train less than a week to play the first Premier League match.
"At this moment, people are worried about trying to have what they never have. For example, speaking about pre-season injuries, there are pre-season injuries. 'Everyone has pre-season injuries in normal seasons, so we cannot expect now not to have an injury here, an injury there.
"We cannot ask for more than the authorities are giving us, which is the maximum security, and I think now it's time just to play and to give people what people want."
This should be a value bet, considering Tottenham are currently sitting only two points off sixth spot. Mourinho's team still have European rivals Manchester United and Sheffield United to play; positive results there would really boost their prospects. A 7/4 price for the top six looks the best outright market from a Tottenham perspective.
Tottenham to finish inside top six - 7/4 with Sky Bet
Tottenham to make top four - 10/1 with Sky Bet
Sky Sports will show 64 live Premier League games when the season resumes. In addition to the 39 matches already scheduled to be broadcast exclusively live on Sky Sports before the coronavirus interruption, 25 more matches will be available on both Sky Sports Premier League and Sky's free-to-air Pick channel, allowing the whole nation to be part of the return of live sport.
Free-to-watch highlights of every remaining Premier League game this season will be available from shortly after the full-time whistle on the Sky Sports website, Sky Sports App and Sky Sports Football YouTube channel.
