Can Spurs win any silverware this season?

For all the deserved praise that Mauricio Pochettino has received in his time at Spurs, in the end, he will be judged in the same way that all managers at top clubs are judged: by trophies.

It is nearly ten years since Juande Ramos’s side lifted the League Cup, and you have to go back another eight years to find the only other silverware that Spurs have claimed during the Premier League era, when George Graham’s team won the same trophy.

October’s dramatic 3-2 defeat by West Ham means that the League Cup is one piece of silverware that won’t be coming Spurs’ way this season, but they are still in with a shout in the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup. As the season heads into the final third, it’s a good opportunity to look at each competition in turn and ask what Pochettino and the players need to do if they are to end that ten-year trophy drought.

Premier League

After finishing fifth, third and second in Pochettino’s first three seasons in charge, it was assumed that Spurs would be able to mount a serious challenge for the Premier League title this season. Yet it hasn’t quite worked out like that. A run of three defeats in five games in the autumn put a serious dent in their Premier League campaign, and going into the crucial phase of the season, they are 20 points off the Premier League pace.

Miracles can happen, of course, as Leicester City fans will tell you, but at this stage, it is far from certain that Spurs will finish in the top four, let alone overhaul the league leaders, and it seems that bookmakers are already downgrading them for next season’s campaign, with Man City, Man United, Liverpool and Chelsea all rated ahead of them.

What has gone wrong? Although much was made of a potential Wembley curse, Pochettino has managed to adapt the team’s high-pressing game to the wide open Wembley spaces, and they’ve only lost once at their temporary home, though dropping points against Swansea, Burnley and West Bromwich Albion has not helped their cause.

Inconsistency appears to be the main problem, combined with an inability to close out games. The default Spurs tactic is to smother their opponents, pressing and compressing their play, but this requires intense concentration and focus right to the last minute. Whereas teams built around retaining possession can sometimes play out time when they have the game in the bag, Tottenham have to chase to the last.

A Premier League title seems extremely unlikely this year, but to start winning trophies, Spurs need to find a way to close out games against the other top sides, or at least discover the ability to pick up a scrappy point from such encounters. And time is running out. Failure to finish in the top four would turn the probability of losing Harry Kane into a certainty.

Champions League

If looking at the Premier League table gives Spurs fans a headache, a glance at the Champions League results for this campaign is guaranteed to bring a warm glow to the heart. Topping a section that included Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund was a phenomenal achievement that gave a tantalising glimpse of how close Spurs are to a place at the European top table. The 3-1 victory over Real, in particular, felt like an era-defining result, and picking up a point at the Bernabéu was no less impressive.

However, in the Champions League, the challenges get harder with every round. As European assignments go, a last-16 game against Juventus is about as tough as they come, and while they could have had a kinder draw, the fact is that if Spurs are to be one of Europe’s top sides, they have to consider themselves the equal of teams such as Juventus. The psychological significance of victory in this game could surpass that of the Real win, but if they are to get past Juventus and beyond, they will need to be at the top of their game.

In particular, Harry Kane will have to make an impact against one of the world’s best defences, and the Spurs backline will have to stand firm. Whether he goes with a back three or a back four in Turin, Pochettino will have to be spot on with his selections and tactics in a game that could end up defining his Spurs career.

FA Cup

While the Champions League is the competition that has the potential to turn this season from disappointment to triumph – and potentially persuade the likes of Harry Kane to stick with the club a while longer – the FA Cup is the most likely source of silverware, not least because the final – if they get there – will effectively be a home game.

A place in the top four and progression in the Champions League will obviously be the priorities, but a ninth FA Cup would be a solid achievement. The draw has been kind to Spurs so far this season, and League One side Rochdale should not be much of an obstacle to reaching the quarter-finals. FA Cup success has helped to prolong Arsène Wenger’s time at Arsenal, and lifting that particular piece of silverware would do wonders for Pochettino’s longevity, as well as giving trophy-starved Spurs fans something tangible to celebrate.

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