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Clear into third place, the media praising the club and dreams of even making a run at second place. When was the last time Tottenham Hotspur were in this position?
Last season. And they collapsed.
Following Spurs' win over Arsenal two weeks ago, Andre Villas-Boas was praised for changing the culture at Tottenham. No longer would the team fold just when expectations got high and the spotlight bright. Harry Redknapp's soft-minded Spurs were a thing of the past.
A win over Inter Milan only boosted Villas-Boas and Spurs' profile more, but the last week has turned the hype around the club into doubt. Losses to Liverpool and Inter have people questioning whether Spurs are going to repeat last season's swoon.
A week changes a lot. Perception. Performance. One's grasp on reality.
Spurs may have fallen at Anfield last week, but they did outplay Liverpool for an hour. It was not the no-show performances that marred Tottenham's run-in a year ago and while the Inter loss on Thursday was as ugly as ugly gets, one bad match does not make a crisis.
Tottenham will hope to end the talk of their slide on Sunday when they host Fulham, which will also mark another return of Martin Jol to White Hart Lane. Toss in Moussa Dembele and Clint Dempsey (fit again) against their old clubs and there won't be a shortage of lazy storylines.
Oh, and Gareth Bale is back. Are Spurs a one-man team?
Fresh off of a shocking loss to Inter without Bale, the talk about whether Spurs are overly reliant on the Welshman are back. Another Bale goal and a Tottenham win will bring that talk to an all-time high.
Are Spurs going to collapse like last season?How badly does Martin Jol want to beat his old club? Can Dembele and Dempsey haunt Fulham? Are Spurs a one-man team?
It's a lazy man's dream.
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