Opinion: The crucial run of fixtures that we think could decide the top four race

Tottenham have a battle on their hands if they are to seal Champions League qualification for the fifth season in a row.

The Lilywhites currently find themselves eight points below Chelsea, who currently occupy fourth place in the Premier League table, while Manchester United, Wolves and Sheffield United are all above Mourinho’s men.

There was a lot of early promise when Jose Mourinho arrived at the club back in November with a run of results helping to narrow the gap. However, that early optimism has all but completely disappeared now due to a string of poor results.

Spurs are winless in their last four Premier League games and have failed to find the back of the net in three of those.

So, while the team’s form indicates that top four is beyond their reach, luckily for Tottenham, their rivals for the top four spots have been just as inconsistent.

If Mourinho is going to guide Tottenham to a top-four finish, the next month could be extremely crucial as many of Spurs’ direct rivals have some difficult fixtures coming up.

Many of these teams will also be playing each other over the next thirty days, ensuring that some are guaranteed to drop points.

Here are some of the fixtures that will be played in the coming month:

Tuesday, January 21

Chelsea vs Arsenal

Sheffield United vs Man City

Wednesday, January 22

Manchester United vs Burnley

Tottenham vs Norwich

Thursday, January 23

Wolves vs Liverpool

Saturday, February 1

Leicester City vs Chelsea

Crystal Palace vs Sheffield United

Manchester United vs Wolves

Sunday, February 2

Tottenham vs Man City

Sunday, February 9

Sheffield United vs Bournemouth

Friday, February 14

Wolves vs Leicester City

Sunday, February 16

Aston Villa vs Tottenham

Monday, February 17

Chelsea vs Manchester United

Saturday, February 22

Chelsea vs Tottenham

Sheffield United vs Brighton

It is clear from that Spurs have a much kinder fixture list than many of their rivals over the next month. Chelsea, who are now fourth, arguably have the most difficult run and are bound to drop points, especially given how inconsistent they have been over the last couple of months.

Spurs could be within touching distance of the Blues when they travel to Stamford Bridge in a month. It is important that Tottenham turn their form around quickly and start picking up points as they could potentially make up a lot of ground on the top four spots in the next 30 days.