Tottenham’s Jan Vertonghen says the pressure is all on Chelsea in the Premier League title race
Tottenham defender Jan Vertonghen insists they have nothing to lose in the Premier League title race, placing all of the pressure on current leaders Chelsea.
A 2-0 win over Arsenal at White Hart Lane on Sunday kept Spurs within four points of the top with four games remaining but Antonio Conte’s men remain firm favourites to win their fifth Premier League title.
But Vertonghen believes the level of expectation at Stamford Bridge puts plenty of pressure on the leaders and reminded those writing off Tottenham that the pendulum can swing with just one defeat.
‘The pressure is on Chelsea. One defeat, and a win for us and the gap will just be a point’, the Belgian told Sky Sports after the game.
Their chase for the title played second fiddle as Dele Alli and Harry Kane scored in the space of two second-half minutes to gift them victory over their greatest rivals Arsenal.
The result means Tottenham will finish above the Gunners for the first time in over 20 years and Vertonghen says the victory was just another indication of how much they want to win the title.
He continued: ‘It was a massive game in so many different ways – we showed from the start we wanted to win more than them, and that we want to stay in the title race.
‘It was a great performance throughout the team, from Hugo [Lloris] in goal through to Harry.’
Despite that level of motivation, Tottenham face a much harder run-in than Chelsea, only once playing in front of a home crowd before the end of the season in a match against Manchester United.
They also face away games against West Ham, Leicester and Hull City while Chelsea play Middlesbrough, Watford and Sunderland at home and one final away game against West Brom.