Gary Neville makes confident prediction about top-four this season

Gary Neville has confidently predicted that the race for Champions League qualification is all but over, with the likes of Tottenham Hotspur unlikely to catch up with Leicester City or Chelsea.

Spurs had clawed their way back into the top four race with three back-to-back wins against Burnley, Fulham and Crystal Palace.

Almost all of the results last weekend went Tottenham’s way and it seemed as though three points against Arsenal would have given Jose Mourinho’s men a great shot at catching the teams above them.

However, Spurs turned in a poor performance at the Emirates as the Gunners emerged 2-1 winners, a result which left the Lilywhites languishing in eighth place.

With ten games left to play, Spurs find themselves six points behind fourth-placed Chelsea with a game in hand, not exactly an insurmountable gap but Neville admitted that he cannot see the likes of West Ham and Spurs putting together a consistent run of results.

When asked who he expects to finish in the top four, former Manchester United defender told Sky Sports (as relayed by The Mirror): “I think it is [fixed]. Leicester are the one team you’d be most nervous about, because they did blow up last season.

“But I think there’s just enough this year. I don’t see West Ham catching Leicester, and the teams below them are so inconsistent and seem to be all over the place.

“I’m not sure which one of them is going to put a run together. ‘They’re capable of it, some of them, but I would think this Leicester team would hang on, and would cement the fact Brendan Rodgers has done a brilliant job two years on the bounce.

“Last year, they were so unlucky to miss out on the last day to Manchester United, whereas this year I think they’ll make top four, with Chelsea third and Leicester fourth.”

Spurs Web Opinion

A six-point gap with ten games left to play is not much, especially in an unpredictable season like this one. However, given the form that Chelsea are in and the fact that we have the Europa League to worry about, it is starting to look like the top four might be out of reach for Spurs.

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