Tim Sherwood is starting to worry that Spurs might not qualify for Champions League football this season, as Arsenal have the chance to overtake them on Monday.
Speaking on the Premier League’s matchday show after Liverpool’s late victory over Tottenham Hotspur, Tim Sherwood expressed his fear that Arsenal could end up finishing above his former side.
“What alarms me, and you (Alan Shearer) keep alluding to it, is that Arsenal win their game in hand against Newcastle, which I think they will…” Sherwood began.
“Avoid defeat, if you don’t mind me saying, if they avoid defeat they’ll still be in the top three,” the host of the show interjected.
“Yeah,” Sherwood responded. “That’s even more alarming. For Arsenal to finish above Tottenham, when we thought the pendulum had swung the other way, and for a new manager to go in and hardly strengthen his squad. For them to finish above Tottenham would be unthinkable.”
With Manchester United in strong form under new management, already level on points with Spurs, and Chelsea just one point behind, it’s very possible Mauricio Pochettino’s side could end up outside the top four altogether.
They’re likely to crash out of the Champions League against Manchester City this month as well, which could leave them facing Europa League football next season.
“Going into this new stadium to play Thursday night in the Europa League, it’s unthinkable,” Sherwood said. “I don’t even want to think about it. I looked at Arsenal’s fixtures on that graphic, they’ll win every game. They can win every single game.”
There probably aren’t many Arsenal fans who would agree with that assessment. Though there are no big six matches left in the Premier League, the Gunners still have to deal with away trips to the likes of Everton and Wolves, so winning every game is a massive ask.
The upside is that they don’t need to at this stage. Unai Emery’s side can already afford to drop two points between now and the end of the season, and Spurs’ match against Manchester City is anything but a guaranteed win, so that could help too. With Tottenham’s recent form, they could well drop points in any game.
First things first, Arsenal need to get that win against Newcastle to get up into third place.