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Former top flight winger Pat Nevin has insisted Tottenham Hotspur have now been drawn into the same survival mindset as Nottingham Forest and West Ham United in the relegation battle.
The fight for survival has tightened significantly, with Spurs, West Ham and Nottingham Forest all securing wins over the weekend, leading to real thoughts the battle to avoid finishing 18th may well go down to the wire.
Tottenham’s victory over Wolves at Molineux marked their first win under Roberto De Zerbi, having taken just one point from his opening two games, and it also stood as their first Premier League win of the year.
Despite that, the Lilywhites remain in the relegation zone in the Premier League, as West Ham picked up a crucial three points against Everton at the London Stadium.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side had spent much of the campaign in the drop zone, but have moved clear in recent weeks through consistent performances, losing just one of their last seven Premier League matches, with Jarrod Bowen hailing their never say die attitude.
Hammers defender El Hadji Malick Diouf also gave an insight into growing confidence in the camp, declaring a feeling that West Ham are back.
With Nottingham Forest also showing solid form and the mindset that they are up for a scrap, eyes have been very much on Tottenham, with a feeling a number of their players have not quite believed the league table.
Injured player Injury Xavi Simons ACL Wilson Odobert ACL Mohammed Kudus Thigh Dejan Kulusevski Knee Cristian Romero Knee Ben Davies Ankle Guglielmo Vicario Groin Destiny Udogie Muscle Pape Matar Sarr Shoulder Dominic Solanke Thigh Current Spurs injuries
Nevin, admitting that weekends where all three sides win have been rare this term, thinks that is evidence why no predictions can be made at this stage of the season.
The former winger feels that West Ham and Nottingham Forest have had the mindset to scrap for results for quite a while and is of the view that now that same mindset seems to have dawned on Tottenham.
Nevin wrote in his BBC Sport Newsletter: “Spurs, Nottingham Forest and West Ham each won in the Premier League this weekend.
“You will search long and hard to find a weekend when that happened this season as they have all struggled to fight clear of relegation.
“It is the main reason why predictions are almost impossible at this time of the season.
“Teams and players cannot be at 100% for every game, but when desperation kicks in, you will get every ounce of effort, even if you can lose some calmness and composure as a result.
“Forest and West Ham have been in this mindset for a while now, but it is only now that Spurs have finally woken up and smelled the very bitter coffee.”
De Zerbi’s side remain three points behind 17th-placed West Ham with four rounds remaining, needing to maximise their own results while relying on slips from both the Hammers and Nottingham Forest.
The Italian boss has claimed that the Spurs players have bought into his methods and believe what he is telling them.
Injuries continue to hit at crucial times though and Xavi Simons’ ACL injury at the weekend is another bitter blow.
Former Tottenham star Jamie O’Hara blasted the Spurs medical team for how they handle the injury to the Dutchman.