Let us think outside the box

Let us think outside the box

By Don Scully

I am talking about our chances of getting a top-four placing. Granted, the way we are playing we shouldn’t make it. In fact, we should be talking about playing in the Europa League next season (unless a miracle should happen and we get to the Champions League final and win it… and yes, pigs might fly, but then I always say if Arsenal can then anything is possible!). Thinking outside the box means that we still could get our act together, at the same time, United and Chelsea keep stumbling over themselves to give us a helping hand; i.e. they keep losing. Yes, we drew yesterday… but Chelsea and United lost, so that is one point on them. There is an eight-point gap between Chelsea and us, and we still got to play United and Chelsea. But we’ve got to stop stuttering. Beat United, and we could be level on points (but inferior goal difference). Beat Chelsea and there will be a 5 point difference, and they’ve got some hard games to come (but then again, so have we). So not impossible, but we’ve got to pull our finger out immediately.

As for the match; we were flat for large parts of the game, most of which we played without Christian Eriksen (he came off the bench to replace Alli in the 73^rd minute). The Danish leaver, who wants away (yes, he who keeps buggering up passes), couldn’t spark our side into a decisive moment at the end of a week where his link with Inter Milan had reignited a feud between Mourinho and the Serie A side's boss Antonio Conte (a bit of off the pitch baiting never hurt anybody; besides, it took the focus away from other issues).

As for the replaced Alli, well he cut a frustrated figure when he was replaced, the England midfielder having headed one of our few decent chances over the Watford crossbar early in the second half.

Mourinho's men lacked a focal point in the absence of Kane, and this third consecutive game without a goal is now the sixth time in a row where we have failed to win in the Premier League when “one of our own” has not been involved.

Kane will be ruled out until at least April, if not longer with a hamstring injury. This is something we’ve got to address quickly if we want to climb out of hell’s kitchen and back into contention for a Champions League placing, FA Cup continuation, and, dare I say it, another Champions League Final. All can be achieved with optimism, and ones head stuck firmly in the clouds.

To be honest, it was a miserable and frustrating day all around. After the good performance against Liverpool (albeit, we lost) and defeating Middlesbrough so that we can get revenge on Southampton, we dropped points in a game we should have won.

All this leaves us failing to score in three consecutive Premier League games for the first time since November 2013. This result also ended 93 league games without a 0-0 draw for us, the second-longest such run in the competition - behind Manchester United's 114-game sequence that ended in May 2002. We also kept our first away clean sheet in the league for 382 days, since winning 3-0 at Cardiff on New Year's Day 2019.

In the Watford game there were 32 shots without a goal, the most in the competition since Crystal Palace v Cardiff in December 2018 (40).

As well as being winless in our past six league games without Kane, we have failed to score in four of those matches. All this tells us that we need to buck our ideas up and quickly. I’ve pointed out the failures and possible failures of Chelsea and United (forget the Gunners as they are below us), but we can’t keep relying on them.

Just something else to add, probably help you sink into depression even further; 54 years ago (18^th Jan 1965) I remember travelling to Torquay (the home of Basil Fawlty), with my family, to see a rearranged match against Torquay United and watch Jimmy Greaves score three,  Jimmy Robertson and Alan Gilzean scored one piece to thrash them 5-1 in an FA cup round. And that is what we are missing now. Goals,  such talent and excellent results. But, on a positive, acorns didn’t turn into trees straight away.  Just a point of observation: if left unmolested, the seedling (we are talking acorns/ trees here) will gradually grow and develop into a sapling tree after four to five years. So, there you have it, let that be a warning for you (and now your depression has nosedived even further, sorry). God help us! But then again, why not? He has helped others, less inferior teams, along their way to Gory… sorry, Glory (Oh, glory, glory, Tottenham Hotspur… our day will come… then the others will have to watch their step!!!!!!!).