Tottenham have done well to keep pace with the big guns, but are red-hot Chelsea too stern a test?

Tottenham Hotspur find themselves in quite the role reversal as they aim to haul in runaway leaders Chelsea on Wednesday evening at White Hart Lane. Egged on by the likes of Liverpool, Arsenal, the Manchesters (United and City), Mauricio Pochettino’s men must hope to put stop dead in its tracks the freight train that is Diego Costa, Eden Hazard, Antonio Conte and co.

As Pochettino recalled after his side’s 4-1 thrashing of Watford on Sunday, Spurs had an excellent festive around and were challenging for the title along with the likes of eventual champions Leicester City but the chasing pack were rooting for Spurs’ title challenge to be derailed.

This time around, the cheerleaders are praying that the Lilywhites can do what 12 other sides and Spurs themselves have tried and failed to do: try and take a point off Chelsea.

Record points total, but will it be enough?

Spurs are on course for their best points finish in the Premier League era, and at the half-way mark have 39 points with 11 wins and six draws, well on their way to beating their highest tally in the Premier League era, the 70 points that they achieved last season and in 2009-’10.

Yet this is a season in which 75-77 points may not be enough for fourth place as the top six look set in stone. Manchester United in sixth, are nine points ahead of Everton in seventh and with the exception of Liverpool’s draw against Sunderland and defeat of City, all the sides in the top six have won all their festive fixtures.

The North Londoners are winning more matches than ever before and have scored a fair amount of goals as well, but in a title race more tightly packed than a bottle of Fizzy Bubbly, will it be enough? They have the most fragile of legs considering their squad depth and in a monumental mad dash by the elite, the likes of which the Premier League has not witnessed before, it may not be.

The Blues new-year bash to continue?

In any other league, Tottenham’s two league defeats, one to Chelsea and the other to United would have been touted as highly commendable but such has been the Blues domination that they are on course to break every record imaginable in the Premier League era.

Bookmakers have slashed the odds on Chelsea notching up the highest ever points in the PL ever, a record of 95 points set in Jose Mourinho’s first season at the club. Antonio Conte’s men boast of the second highest number of goals (42) and the lowest conceded (13) in the league.

Of course, the absence of midweek fixtures has helped but it is the absence of pressure that has really taken the load off several key men. Eden Hazard and Diego Costa, who had such poor seasons in the build-up to the Euros look like rejuvenated men.

Chelsea themselves, massively underhyped in the hoopla surrounding Guardiola v Mourinho or City v United in the build-up to the season, have profited from dampened expectations and have thrived on the pitch, where it matters the most.

Sample this for crazy: they currently have 49 points, and need only one point to match their total from last season!

Chelsea looking for streak

With their win against Stoke, Chelsea equalled Arsenal’s 13 game winning streak back in 2003-’04 and a win against their fellow Londoners could see them create a new record. Spurs themselves have won their last four and will not make it easy in front of their home faithful.

For the hosts, Christian Eriksen is in the form of his life, having scored five in his last eight games and also set up two goals at St. Mary’s in their 4-1 rout of Southampton, the first time since 1998 that the Saints conceded four goals in a home league game. The Dane also opened the scoring against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Following their early-season win against City, Spurs only managed three goals in six games but Dele Alli and Harry Kane have put up some stupendous performances of late, the former netting five in his last three with the latter scoring three against Watford and Southampton, easing their woes in front of goal.

Pochettino does not have too many calls to take with Erik Lamela the only notable absentee. The Spurs’ gaffer may choose to start Moussa Sissoko on the right, in place of Son Heung-Min and with Jan Vertonghen and Kyle Walker returning from suspension, he will field a side that resembles his first-choice XI.

Competition for places in Chelsea’s squad is fierce, which Conte will admit is a good thing, as Pedro returns from suspension with his replacement Willian bagging a brace against Stoke City.

Cesc Fabregas has notched up three assists in Chelsea’s last two games but may lose his place to the returning Nemanja Matic. Conte’s side have only let in one goal during their last six away games, an own goal through Gary Cahill. This stat is important in more ways than one, for Cahill may represent the home team’s best chance to break through an otherwise-stubborn defence.

In a back three with the ever-dependable Cesar Azpilicueta and a fast-improving David Luiz flanked by the industry of wing-backs Marcos Alonso and Victor Moses, the English centre-back’s lack of pace may be exploited to the hilt by a young, energetic, high-pressing Spurs team.

Rewind to September, when Spurs had hassled and harried a City team, unbeaten till that point, into several mistakes and had relentlessly pressed Pep Guardiola’s side like their lives were on the line. That day, Pochettino had seen his young uns’ halt one streak. Conte will make sure his boys watch the video before stepping out on to the Lane.

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