Since a catastrophic loss to Chelsea in November- a game which saw Tottenham lose four keys players, Ange Postecoglou's side haven't regained the prolific nature of the performances that saw them top the Premier League earlier on in the campaign.
Overall the Australian's first season in charge has exceeded all expectations, as many football enthusiasts predicted that Tottenham would be nowhere near competing for the European spots as they have done in previous seasons.
This was mainly due to the departure of their record goalscorer Harry Kane, who managed to score 30 times last season, despite Spurs finishing eighth- their worst Premier League return since 2009.
However, even though Postecoglou's side are right in the thick of the Champions League race, there is a great sense of missed opportunity among the Spurs fan base. A surplus of absentees and late goals conceded has seen their side slide further and further from the Premier League's summit.
It was clear from the moment Postecoglou arrived that Spurs would be unrecognisable from the days of Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte. Their chaotic, yet highly entertaining style of football can be outlined by the fact that have both scored and conceded more injury-time goals than any other team in the League so far this season.
Postecoglou has received much admiration for his refusal to adjust his tactics, most notably when Tottenham went down to nine men and lost both of their centre backs against Chelsea, yet continued to play a high line, "If we go down to five men, mate, we'll have a crack."
However, fans are now starting to question whether this stubborn approach is costing the team vital points with how vulnerable Spurs look defensively. The new-found defensive pairing of Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven seemed to have finally filled the void left by Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld. This was furthered strengthened by the arrival of Radu Dragusin in the January transfer window, who signed at the same time Romero and van de Ven returned from injury.
Since then, things haven't gone as expected. Tottenham have failed to keep a clean sheet since before Christmas and their high-possession, free flowing style no longer seems to exploit teams like it did earlier on in the season.
No predictability for the starting 11
From sparse options and a bench full of academy players, to a near fully fit squad in a matter of weeks. Its becoming difficult to establish the strongest lineup to field with competition for positions suddenly becoming a lot higher.
Attackers Son Heung-Min and Richarlison appear to have cemented their places in the starting lineup, the pair have 22 League goals between them. The right wing position on the other hand, consists of Brennan Johnson, Dejan Kulusevski and Timo Werner- who is the most versatile of these options. With that said, each of these players have struggled to convince on a regular bases and offered little reliability for their manager with their inconsistent displays.
As for the midfield, the return of Pape Matar Sarr and Yves Bissouma was an encouraging prospect- the pair have not started together for over two months. But the partnership failed to impress on their return against Wolves and the recent performances of Rodrigo Bentancur have also been underwhelming. Although, the Uruguay international has insisted that it will take time for him to return to his best, after being sidelined for a total of 11 months, with two separate injuries.
James Maddison and Giovani Lo Celso are the two players Spurs rely on most for creativity, but again, the return from injury for the pair seems to be causing headache for Postecoglou, as his current formation cannot accommodate both in the starting lineup.
A possible solution to their lack of clinical wingers and overload of central midfielders would be to switch to a diamond set up in midfield, but this would completely contradict the setup that Postecoglou has opted with throughout his entire career.
It is obvious though that if Spurs are to return to the Champions League that something needs to change for the remaining 13 games- with Aston Villa refusing to budge from fourth spot and Manchester United winning their last four games, moving to within three points of the North London side.
It certainly prepares the Premier League for an exciting finale with thrilling three-horse races for both the title and the final Champions League spot.
