Still in the mix

So it’s not the result we were looking for but it’s not a major disaster either, Spurs battled hard in the second half to rescue a point and might have even stolen a win in the end if Gareth Bale’s free kick had not been uncharacteristically underhit.

The game was an excellent spectacle and showcased all that has been good and bad about Tottenham’s season. First the bad, I’ve always been a Michael Dawson fan but he made a couple of key errors tonight most notably not reacting to the danger when Ramires nipped in for Chelsea’s second. Tom Huddlestone is a quandry, undoubtedly gifted but when his passing is off, as was the case tonight, he can look sluggish and awkward plus he didn’t manage to stamp his physical presence in midfield.

Both Bale and Lennon still don’t look fit and didn’t contribute anywhere near what we have come to expect.

But enough of the negatives, there were a lot of good points to take out of this evening’s game, the biggest being the performance of a much maligned Togolese forward. Quite simply Adebayor was immense, his running of the channels, sublime touches and endless energy up front had us all scratching our heads wondering where this player has been all season. Vertonghen’s performance at the back was also noteworthy, his tackling and storming runs forward sum up all that’s good about the big Belgian’s game.

The team never stopped working in the second half and we certainly finished the game the stronger. If we can take one thing out of this season it’s that the soft-in-the-middle Spurs team of old that tended to wilt near the end of games might be consigned to the past once and for all.

So, where does the result leave us? Sadly, qualification for the Champions League is now out of our hands but we’re still only a point behind the gooners and as we know, anything can happen in football. Anything less than six points in the remaining games won’t be good enough but the way Arsenal’s season has gone indicates that they’re more than capable of dropping points, let’s just hope Wigan or Newcastle can do us a favour.

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