Scott Minto has claimed that he would not rule Tottenham out of the running for a top-four finish in the Premier League this season with Antonio Conte now at the helm.
With the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool all heavily tipped to pull away from the chasing pack, the final Champions League spot looks all to play for, with a host of sides likely to be in the reckoning come the end of the season.
West Ham currently sit in the top four following their strong start to the campaign, actually one place above Liverpool after claiming an impressive 3-2 win over the Reds on Sunday.
Arsenal are two points back in fifth-place after riding an eight-game unbeaten run since the 5-0 drubbing against Manchester City back in August, while Tottenham are six points off fourth in ninth after a mixed opening 11 games.
However, although Minto believes the race for the top four will be hotly contested, he feels Spurs could make a claim to make it at the end of the season over the Gunners, with the balance being tipped as a result of the appointment of former Chelsea boss Conte.
Speaking on talkSPORT, he said: “I think that fourth-place is up for grabs. I must admit, I did think that when [Cristiano] Ronaldo signed for [Manchester] United, ‘they’re in the game here’.
“But there’s three teams going for the title, and I do include Liverpool in that – even though they’re fourth. So, it goes to show how well West Ham are doing.
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“That fourth-place is up for grabs, big time. There’s a lot of teams [who could claim it]. I don’t really see Arsenal, even though they’re sitting fifth.
“Look at the team in ninth, Spurs, with Antonio Conte – I wouldn’t rule them out, as crazy as that sounds. But I think West Ham have a fantastic chance at their best ever Premier League finish and finishing in the top-four. And that would be amazing.”
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It may seem like it is still early days, but realistically Conte has a lot of work to do to drag Spurs back to the Champions League.
There are a few good sides currently competing to get into the top four but, hopefully, he can get Spurs playing his way quickly so a solid run of points can be built.
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