Dare do dream?

Firstly.. hello all, im a long time reader on both the bbc version and ja606, but this is my posting debut. Triffic time to be a Tottenham fan and just couldn't miss out on the fun in this place for any longer!

Great result last night, in what I think we all agree was a very important game. As a relatively young fan (mid 20s) historically we have seen us have plenty of opportunities to kick on only to muck it up at the key times. Tonight was different, we are really playing with belief and dare I say a swagger where the players look confident controlling games and almost as if it’s just a matter of time before they get the goals. The danger of that is complacency of course but the results keep on coming. I think as Tottenham fans we almost have an in built pessimism, that has me thinking before games, even when we're on a run like this "surely the wheels are going to come off soon". I think I and many other Spurs fans are trying not to get carried away, for danger of getting egg on out face when indeed the wheels inevitably fall off (not saying they necessarily will, but I think that what a lot of us are quietly thinking, almost because we just don't know any different).

We've put to bed the much discussed game in hand and now all being equal, sit 3 points off the top of the Premier League in January. Nobody, nobody predicted this at the start of the season, and a lot of us as fans have never known it so good. Of course our prime objective was and remains to finish in the top 4 and get a Champions League spot. Many expect us to fall away still, but as Alan Hansen so appropriately put it recently "we're not going away". So my question (admittedly I've found a long winded way of asking it) is this.. At what stage do us fans dare to believe? Do we have to keep the bursts of optimism in check and be realistic (I still think we would all bite somebody’s hand off if they offered us a guaranteed 4th spot now)... OR, do we dare to dream?

There is a long way to go, there are tough games to go, but it’s fantastic just to be considered as challengers. Think back to the dross of much of the 90s and the early 00s.. I think most of us would have laughed if told we'd be where we are now. Sure we are still big outsiders, and a lot of things would have to go in our favour.. but in the words of Jimmy Greaves "it's a funny old game". It’s certainly hard to imagine having a better opportunity than we have now.

We have two very winnable games coming up and we need to continue to do what we have been doing in those, and then we have a period of tough games. We've had great results against most of those 'tough' teams in recent years and what’s to say we can't continue to nick points in those games and keep ourselves in the hunt? What’s to say we can’t go to Man City and put on the performance we all know we are capable of and getting the 3 points? What’s to say we can’t break our Man Utd jinx? Why not nick a point or better at Stamford Bridge, Anfield and them lot down the road.. and even just keep us in the mix. Fans of those teams know what a good team we have, but will continue to write us off and they are assuming we will come unstuck in those games. Again, maybe we will… but maybe, just maybe we won’t.

Let’s get behind the team in the second half of the season, and let’s just see what happens. We are feeling a pressure like never before, where every game is almost a ‘must win’. Let’s not let that pressure transpire to the team, as fans let’s just enjoy the ride. None of us expected to be in this position, and let’s just enjoy it. The pressure is on the Mancs, everybody is expecting them to pull away from us, we’re the underdogs here. Sing our hearts out at every game, home and away. Even if we let in a last minute goal in the final game that sees us 2nd instead of first, we’d all be gutted, but still how incredible will it be to have been 2nd in this division, having done it the right way (no Suger Daddy, less resources than most of the top 6, etc).

WUMs will no doubt read this and call me and anyone that supports this deluded.. but they won’t get the point, I still don’t think we will win it. The odds are in the manc’s favour and 9 times out of 10, things will go their way, and we’ll still be delighted with 3rd or 4th… but maybe, just maybe this will be the time things go a little differently .
“It’s a funny old game"