Resilient Burnley dampen Tottenham Hotspurs title chances
Tottenham Hotspur's hopes of challenging for the title suffered a major setback after a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Sean Dyche's Burnley at Turf Moor. A win for Mauricio Pochettino would have seen Tottenham cut the gap to the top to just 2 points, but it was not to be.
Tottenham have managed to stage several comebacks this season but were held by a resilient Burnley side who have been on a good run over the last 7 games picking up 4 wins and 3 draws before last nights game against Tottenham.
Harry Kane, who made an early recovery from the injury he picked against Manchester United started the game for Spurs but could not ensure the victory for his side although he did manage to score the equalizing goal that gave the Tottenham camp some hope.
Pochettino was visibly frustrated as he may have felt hard done by the result especially since the corner kick that led to the first goal for Burnley, should not have been awarded. At the end of the game, an upset Pochettino had a lot to say to the referee.
This defeat is Tottenham's seventh for the season and seriously dampens their title chances as they would require Manchester City and Liverpool to slip up in their matches. It is also worth mentioning that Tottenham have not drawn a single game this season.
Spurs have been one of the most consistent teams in the Premier League since the 2015-16 season, finishing in the top 4 in each of those seasons. Mauricio Pochettino has done wonders at Tottenham with a limited transfer budget and not splurging a vast sum of money over the transfer window.
Even with financial constraints, Pochettino has consistently delivered in terms of results over the last three seasons. Tottenham have faced some challenges over the last year or two, with the change in the stadium and overcoming the Wembley curse.
With 11 games remaining in the Premier League Tottenham still have a chance at challenging for the title, but the road does not get any easier for Pochettino and his men as they face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday followed by a home game against bitter rivals Arsenal.
Spurs are yet to play Liverpool and City as well, but both of those fixtures are away from home. Spurs would require their title rivals to have major slip-ups over the remainder of the season in order to remain in contention for the title.
All is not lost for Tottenham as they have a lot to play for, with their Champions League second-leg tie against Borrusia Dortmund approaching, and having won the first-leg 3-0, they are the favorites to progress into the quarter-final stage.