Spurs have matured since last season, says Dembele
(Reuters) - Tottenham Hotspur are playing with more maturity and composure this season and those attributes hold the key to their Premier League title chances, midfielder Mousa Dembele said after his side's 2-0 win over leaders Chelsea on Wednesday.
Spurs' victory ended a run of 13 consecutive wins for Chelsea and lifted them into third place, seven points adrift of the leaders.
Chelsea came back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Tottenham at Stamford Bridge last May, ending Spurs' hopes of catching eventual champions Leicester City, but Dembele said it was clear his side had improved.
"That was the difference between now and then. Last time, and last year as well, we scored and then we changed our game, we tried to play different, we panicked more and today we were very adult, we were relaxed," he said.
"Can Spurs catch Chelsea? I never think about this kind of thing. It's just game by game and with the quality we have we can do whatever we want."
Tottenham have now won five matches in a row and have the best defensive record in the Premier League.
"We have played very well in the last few games and with the confidence from today we can have a good run and then anything is possible," Dembele added.
Spurs face Aston Villa in the third round of the FA Cup on Sunday before returning to league action against West Brom on Jan. 14.
(Reporting by Hardik Vyas in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)