I'm 100% with you regarding the desire to win.
Slight snag: the squad isn't there now.
-
The Fighting Cock is a forum for fans of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. Here you can discuss Spurs latest matches, our squad, tactics and any transfer news surrounding the club. Registration gives you access to all our forums (including 'Off Topic' discussion) and removes most of the adverts (you can remove them all via an account upgrade). You're here now, you might as well...
Competition Are we playing for 5th ?
- Thread starter Paul Gascoigne
- Start date
Latest Spurs videos from Sky Sports
Slight snag: the squad isn't there now.
Its being said by a few on paper we are the 5th best team in the league.
The only problem I have with that is the 5th best team in the league should have a frontman who can regularly put the ball in the back of the net.
We have Tel, Oderbert, Johnson, Richarlison and Solanke, with the jury still out on KMP and if his glaring miss against Villa is anything to go by!!!
I know its early in Frank's tenure, but from what I've see so far the first 5 should all be in a squad fighting for a mid-table finish.
Right now I would honestly set-up with a false 9, not start any of them and look to Sarr, Xavi, Kudus and Bergvall to rotate as the false 9.
The only problem I have with that is the 5th best team in the league should have a frontman who can regularly put the ball in the back of the net.
We have Tel, Oderbert, Johnson, Richarlison and Solanke, with the jury still out on KMP and if his glaring miss against Villa is anything to go by!!!
I know its early in Frank's tenure, but from what I've see so far the first 5 should all be in a squad fighting for a mid-table finish.
Right now I would honestly set-up with a false 9, not start any of them and look to Sarr, Xavi, Kudus and Bergvall to rotate as the false 9.
That’s the spirit!!
I’m all up for tempting fate.
Tel league top scorer, Simons top assist maker and Vicario king of the clean sheets.
It’s going to happen!!
More like he has been on the spirit 
At start of season we were 8th favourites for the league, and realistically that is where we are, with about the 8th best team/squad in the league.
Currently we are 6th favourites, and oddsmakers have Woolwich City Chelsea and Liverpool nailed on for Top 4 with us battling United, Newcastle, Bournemouth, Brighton, Palace and Villa for that 5th place.
I see that about right.
We have 3 factions.
The totally unrealistic that want Frank sacked already, that totally overrate the squad, that think we should somehow have mathematically won the league and cup already this season (looking at the papafeels, mehstg and Don Pedros of the forum)
The Frank can do no wrong, everything wrong is still Ange’s fault, burying head in the sand type (thinktank etc) faction
To me both the above factions are as embarrassing and off the mark as one another
Then fortunately we have the majority somewhere in the middle, who understand where we are in the scheme of things (will likely be in race to finish 5th to 10th),
Things look better than last season, but fundamental issues still exist with squad and over-pragmatic tactics etc.
Realistically won’t be much in it come end of season between 5th and 10th, yes, we will be in that space, and doubt more than 3 or 4 points will separate, there will be good results (and hopefully performances), there will be some setbacks, but overall trajectory will be upwards
Currently we are 6th favourites, and oddsmakers have Woolwich City Chelsea and Liverpool nailed on for Top 4 with us battling United, Newcastle, Bournemouth, Brighton, Palace and Villa for that 5th place.
I see that about right.
We have 3 factions.
The totally unrealistic that want Frank sacked already, that totally overrate the squad, that think we should somehow have mathematically won the league and cup already this season (looking at the papafeels, mehstg and Don Pedros of the forum)
The Frank can do no wrong, everything wrong is still Ange’s fault, burying head in the sand type (thinktank etc) faction
To me both the above factions are as embarrassing and off the mark as one another
Then fortunately we have the majority somewhere in the middle, who understand where we are in the scheme of things (will likely be in race to finish 5th to 10th),
Things look better than last season, but fundamental issues still exist with squad and over-pragmatic tactics etc.
Realistically won’t be much in it come end of season between 5th and 10th, yes, we will be in that space, and doubt more than 3 or 4 points will separate, there will be good results (and hopefully performances), there will be some setbacks, but overall trajectory will be upwards
Last edited:
I would be happy with Euro qualification via the league and think that should be the aim. No problems if it is Europa or conference - just try to win them.
Frank is still learning and having teams park the bus against us is something he will need to adapt to and overcome. He looks far more comfortable setting us up away from home.
Our attack is also completely lopsided, we have a huge Semenyo shaped hole on the left
Frank is still learning and having teams park the bus against us is something he will need to adapt to and overcome. He looks far more comfortable setting us up away from home.
Our attack is also completely lopsided, we have a huge Semenyo shaped hole on the left
Top 10.
People are saying stuff like this and not taking into context of our rivals.
No one has put a consistent run together in the Premier League apart from Bournemouth and Palace who by the way have super small squads and in Palace's sake are in Europe so both won't sustain this form.
Newcastle are currently stuttering, Villa have been poor so far although starting to get it together, Utd are...Utd so if we're finishing in the top 10 I'd like to know on what evidence are we finishing behind most of these sides thus far and why?
I don’t think we will but also we are VERY CLOSE to the likes of Newcastle and Villa etc and could so easily have 0 points from our next two fixtures. Of course we could have 6 but neither scenario is overly implausible.
We are very middle of the road at the moment and it’s very hard to predict. That Villa game could’ve gone either way.
It’s really not that hard to imagine all of Woolwich, City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Villa, United, Newcastle, Bournemouth, Palace & a Brighton etc being ahead of us. I don’t think we are streets ahead of any of these.
Hence why early doomsday predictions are a bit silly and totally speculative.
Since last winning the League in 1961 we have finished 5th 6 times
1st - 0 times
2nd - 2 times
3rd - 9 times
4th - 7 times
Harry Redknapp was the first to qualify for the Champions League in its new format, after which both Mauricio Pochetinho (4) and Antonio Conte (1) qualified via League Place while Ange Postecoglue qualified via winning the Uefa Cup. That makes us Champions League contenders 5 times in its current guise through league finishes since Redknapp's 2009/2010 season
Keith Burkinshaw in 1984 won the Uefa cup and finished 8th in the table
Terry Venables in 1991 won the FA Cup and finished 10th in the table
Juande Ramos in 2008 won the League Cup and finished 11th in the table
Ange Postecoglou in 2025 won the Uefa Cup and finished 17th in the table
www.myfootballfacts.com
1st - 0 times
2nd - 2 times
3rd - 9 times
4th - 7 times
Harry Redknapp was the first to qualify for the Champions League in its new format, after which both Mauricio Pochetinho (4) and Antonio Conte (1) qualified via League Place while Ange Postecoglue qualified via winning the Uefa Cup. That makes us Champions League contenders 5 times in its current guise through league finishes since Redknapp's 2009/2010 season
Keith Burkinshaw in 1984 won the Uefa cup and finished 8th in the table
Terry Venables in 1991 won the FA Cup and finished 10th in the table
Juande Ramos in 2008 won the League Cup and finished 11th in the table
Ange Postecoglou in 2025 won the Uefa Cup and finished 17th in the table
Tottenham Hotspur League Records - My Football Facts
Detailed table showing Tottenham Hotspur’s complete Football League records from 1908-09 to 2024-25.
www.myfootballfacts.com
Fair challenge, and reasonable to ask why I say top 10.
If all observers are being reasonable and if nobody starts creating realities that aren't there, we can't compete with the obvious 4 best squads in the PL. We have very little by comparison.
United are United, but they have no distractions and if they beat Brighton on the weekend I think that is the triple-headed belief they need. Can they challenge for top 4? I won't dismiss it because there might just be something of top 4 substance if they beat Brighton. Hard to believe but. ..
On us, I just don't think we can do anything at home. We can't create and when we do we rarely look like being able to convert. Of course there is a chance that changes, but not anytime soon in my opinion.
If/when Solanke and Kulusevski return, and if Simons finds his feet, and Kudus gets that final ball right, and Muani and Richarlison start to do things to inspire belief, and Tel, then who knows. But that is a lot of ifs. Far too many.
I am presuming a 50% return on home games and a win/4 points in each away from home periods, I think all that equates to a top 10 likelihood.
And this. We scare nobody at all. I am surprised it hasn't changed, but as of now I just think we are so easy to defend against and even in midfield we just seem neither this nor that. And that's in the PL, the Champions League and even against lower league teams. Just bizarre but that's how it feels to me.
I don't foresee last season's dross but equally this season seems a bit more even in the PL, and in the absence of the talismanic or turn to one or two players, I just think all we have are good team displays now and then, which I do believe Frank can deliver with this squad. So top 10.
But if it is 9th, 10th or lower, I genuinely think Frank will find his job under threat. ENIC didn't ask Levy to leave to see us in mid-table.
But we need a summer transfer window under the new structure
January is generally far less busy
We can still get a couple in
But next summer will be very important for them to show us they mean business
January is generally far less busy
We can still get a couple in
But next summer will be very important for them to show us they mean business
So if Utd get their shit together you have them in 5th?
What about everyone else as in our rivals who I mentioned?
Because of one single reason - pressure.
Our players can't handle the demand. Frank's biggest task.
So what makes you think our rivals can handle the same demand?
Bevause they arent under the same demand, Newcastle and United apart.
As some have said and rightly so, we have decent players, and despite what some may think, a coach in Frank who is proven.
I just think there are times when the pressure beats them. Case in point Sunday. 2nd beckoned and what happened? Too often.
So Frank needs to sort that.
So there's 2 clubs under the same demand then, actually 3 make that Villa as well?
And I could reverse that and say our squad have the experience over Palace and Bournemouth of finishing high up in the league, what gives those clubs a better chance of finishing higher than us if we have more exp than them?
RE: Sunday -Anyone can point to isolated results about our rivals and say the same thing, that's not really a point.
| "SAME" TEAM | +/- | SAME GAME | +/- | |||||||||||
| 1 | BURNLEY (IPSWICH) | H | 3-0 | W | 3 | H | 1-2 | L | LEICESTER | 2 | A | 1-1 | D | |
| 2 | MANCHESTER CITY | A | 2-0 | W | 3 | A | 4-0 | W | EVERTON | 2 | H | 4-0 | W | |
| 3 | BOURNEMOUTH | H | 0-1 | L | 2 | H | 2-2 | D | NEWCASTLE UNITED | 2 | A | 1-2 | L | |
| 4 | WEST HAM UNITED | A | 3-0 | W | 4 | A | 1-1 | D | Woolwich | 5 | H | 0-1 | L | |
| 5 | BRIGHTON | A | 2-2 | D | 5 | A | 2-3 | L | BRENTFORD | 3 | H | 3-1 | W | |
| 6 | WOLVES | H | 1-1 | D | 5 | H | 2-2 | D | MANCHESTER UNITED | 1 | A | 3-0 | W | |
| 7 | LEEDS (LEICESTER) | A | 2-1 | W | 7 | A | 1-1 | D | BRIGHTON | 4 | A | 2-3 | L | |
| 8 | ASTON VILLA | H | 1-2 | L | 4 | H | 4-1 | W | WEST HAM UNITED | 1 | H | 4-1 | W | |
| 9 | EVERTON | A | 3-0 | W | 7 | A | 2-3 | L | CRYSTAL PALACE | 4 | A | 0-1 | L | |
| 10 | CHELSEA | H | H | 3-4 | L | ASTON VILLA | H | 4-1 | W | |||||
| 11 | MANCHESTER UNITED | H | H | 1-0 | W | IPSWICH | H | 1-2 | L | |||||
| 12 | Woolwich | A | A | 1-2 | L | MANCHESTER CITY | A | 4-0 | W | |||||
| 13 | FULHAM | H | H | 1-1 | D | FULHAM | H | 1-1 | D | |||||
| 14 | NEWCASTLE UNITED | A | A | 1-2 | L | BOURNEMOUTH | A | 0-1 | L | |||||
| 15 | BRENTFORD | H | H | 3-1 | W | CHELSEA | H | 3-4 | L |
