Gary Lineker: Tottenham are falling short in Premier League for this reason
By Will Butcher
Gary Lineker described Tottenham’s performance against Liverpool as a “shambles” and said they need to do better against other top sides if they want to win the Premier League.
Speed machine Sadio Mane scored two goals within three minutes during the first half on Saturday, as Spurs struggled to cope with the Senegal international and lost 2-0..
Speaking on BBC One’s Match of the Day programme on Saturday night, Lineker believes Spurs’ form against the top six has to improve if they are to remain in the hunt for the title.
“We don’t usually say this, because they’re usually a very solid outfit. But Spurs were a bit of a shambles,” Lineker said.
“Spurs’ away record against the current top six doesn’t make good reading. They’ve got to turn that around.”
Tottenham are now way off the pace behind Premier League leaders Chelsea, as Antonio Conte’s side look to go 12 points clear with a win against Burnley on Sunday.
In what was a surprisingly lacklustre performance from Mauricio Pochettino’s side, Liverpool capitalised on a number of defensive mistakes from Kyle Walker, Ben Davies and Hugo Lloris.
Spurs have only won twice in nine games against the top six this season, securing three points against Manchester City back in October and a win against Chelsea last month.
But former Southampton boss Pochettino has seen his side fail to pick up three points against the big sides on seven other occasions and that has seen Chelsea open up a gap between first and second.
Lineker, who made 138 appearances in all competitions for the north London side and scored 80 goals, believes Spurs must be able to match the big boys of the league if they want to go all the way.
In other Tottenham news, this BBC pundit believes this is what is preventing Spurs from achieving Premier League glory.
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