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Roy Keane has questioned Tottenham’s title credentials despite José Mourinho’s side regaining top spot in the Premier League with a painstaking goalless draw at Chelsea.
The Spurs simply needed to avoid defeat at Stamford Bridge to get back on top and almost did the job, with Chelsea guilty of wasting a string of second-half chances on a cautious affair Sunday.
The point maintained Tottenham’s two-point lead over their London rivals and, more importantly, put them ahead of champions Liverpool on goal difference, further fueling the prospect of a May win.
However, when asked if Mourinho could lead Spurs to their first league title since 1961, Keane told Sky Sports: “He has done it before. His resume is fantastic.
“But I don’t think these players that he has at Spurs are good enough to win the title. They have the X factor in Mourinho and Harry Kane, I don’t think that’s enough. They were holding out at the end at Stamford Puente.
“I think they have a very good season, but a very good season is a big difference in trying to win the league title. I don’t think so. Manchester City are stronger than Spurs.”
Keane added: “The Spurs have had some really good results, but they have still had some problems here and there, against Newcastle and West Ham.
“But there wasn’t much of a surprise with what we saw with Tottenham at Chelsea. They depend a lot on Harry Kane, he was quiet.
“José Mourinho said his players were disappointed in the dressing room, I think they should be delighted. Mourinho will be delighted.”
Keane’s comments came in response to Mourinho’s claims that the Spurs locker room was unhappy about not leaving Stamford Bridge with all three points.
The Sky Sports expert accused Mourinho of playing games, arguing that Tottenham’s performance, which allowed only one goal attempt, was symptomatic of a team willing to settle for a point.
The Spurs coach disagreed: “It’s not true, my players are my witnesses, we came here to win. I share this mentality with my players.”
“We were ready to punish them if they took the risks that they normally take. We came here to win, we didn’t and we didn’t because the opponents’ defense was so good.”
“They didn’t take risks, they didn’t project many players in attack as they normally do, and also because we have to do a little better.
“We built well from the goalkeeper, we reached the midfield many times with the ball under control, but we did not transform that on occasions. That was basically our problem.
“But I don’t remember playing at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea, or with them, where the opposing goalkeeper had to make a single stop in 90 minutes. That was what Hugo [Lloris] he did, it was an incredible save at the end, but a save from a long-range shot. “
José: Spurs, a ‘pony’ in the race for the PL title
Despite guiding his team to the top, Mourinho continued to downplay Tottenham’s chances of clinching the Premier League trophy at the end of the season, insisting that Chelsea remained a great rival.
“We are not even in the race, so we are not a horse,” added Mourinho. “I don’t know the English word for young little horses. Pony. We’re just a pony, and you see the difference.
“Chelsea are one of the biggest contenders, there is no doubt about that. It is not a problem for them to be two points behind us and Liverpool.
“I don’t think it’s a problem for Chelsea, they know how powerful they are, the squad they have. They know this is a long career and they also know that Tottenham is not a candidate.”
Lampard: If we are contenders, they too
Frank Lampard disagreed with Mourinho’s assessment, insisting that Spurs should be considered title contenders if Chelsea fit into that group.
“It is José’s call to say it as he sees it from his end, but from outside they are the best in the league, if we are contenders, they have to be contenders,” said the Chelsea manager.
“If you have Harry Kane and Heung-min Son on your team, Kane has seven goals, There are nine, and you keep a clean sheet well, they would expect to be in the race.
“They have invested a lot, they had Gareth Bale on the bench and Dele Alli was not here, there is a strong team there. We are all competing, but José can say it as he sees it.”
“I guess it’s irrelevant what the post-game feeling is from Jose’s point of view for us. We just have to focus on ourselves. We know he’s tight at the top.
“It is not just us Tottenham and Liverpool who are in the race, there are many teams around us this season that look slightly different from recent seasons.”
Source: m.allfootballapp.com
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