Premier League restart preview: Favourable run-in gives Tottenham top-four hope

This has been a season to forget for Tottenham so far. After a promising summer that saw Spurs smash their club-record transfer, securing the services of Tanguy Ndombele, and following that up with the arrivals of Giovani Lo Celso and Ryan Sessegnon, the north London side parted ways with Mauricio Pochettino in November. 

Results improved marginally following the appointment of Jose Mourinho, yet Spurs, on the whole, have struggled this season. The hope now is that a prolonged period with the players following football's break due to the Coronavirus pandemic will allow Mourinho to translate his ideas across to his squad as they look to make a late push for a top-four finish. 

Pre-Lockdown Form 

The results weren't great for Tottenham pre-lockdown. Comprehensively knocked out of the Champions League by Bundesliga powerhouse RB Leipzig, Spurs have lost ample ground in the race for the top four. Their last league win was a last-gasp 3-2 win at relegation threatened Aston Villa and now winless in their last six in all competitions, losing five, Mourinho will hope to have used the break to rejuvenate the players for the final weeks of the campaign. 

With just three wins to their name in their last 10 top-flight outings, this isn't the response supporters expected when Mourinho took over the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium reins. Indeed, a Champions League place remains within reach, but they need to hit the ground running when play resumes next week in order to make up the ground between themselves and the top four. 

Squad Updates 

Bemoaning a lack of forwards, Mourinho has endured rotten luck with injuries to his attacking players in 2020. Harry Kane picked up a hamstring injury on New Year's Day, while Son Heung-Min broke his arm in the aforementioned 3-2 win at Villa. January arrival Steven Bergwijn picked up an injury in the 1-1 draw with Burnley in March and midfielder Moussa Sissoko, like Kane, hasn't featured since the 1-0 loss at Southampton to kick off the year. 

However, ahead of next week, Spurs' sole injury absence is that of young striker Troy Parrott, while Dele Alli misses the Manchester United game through suspension, and the four returning stars will have a big role to play over the coming weeks. Kane's availability is perhaps the biggest boost given he is their top scorer, with 11 league goals, and highest rated player (7.30) in the Premier League this season. 

Son's return is also a timely boost with the South Korean excelling both with and without Kane and it's no coincidence that Spurs failed to win a match with the pair sidelined. Son has scored six goals in his last five outings for Mourinho's side, so to have the 27-year-old and Kane is huge.

Tottenham will, however, be without Dele Alli for their first game back after the midfielder was given a one-match ban over a post on social media back in February mocking Coronavirus.

Run-in Difficulty 

Tottenham are fortunate in that they have one of the more favourable run-ins in the Premier League. Using WhoScored.com's unique rating system, the difficulty of their opponents has an average rating of 6.72; only Wolves and Manchester City have easier. That isn't to say the end to the campaign is a walk in the park for Spurs, but in the next nine league matches, they face only two of the traditional Big Six, starting with the welcome of Manchester United next Friday. 

That said, the stand out fixture comes in the first North London Derby at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in mid-July and with Mikel Arteta's Arsenal starting to show positive signs of improvement following the Spaniard's December appointment, this clash between the two rivals is the standout fixture for Mourinho's Spurs. 

Current League Position: 8th (7 points off the top four)