Redkanpp:Top 4 still possible

Harry Redknapp London - Arabstoday The wheels have not so much come off at Tottenham as entirely splintered, rolled down the hill and fallen into the Thames. The 5-1 humiliation at the hands of Chelsea at Wembley last weekend ended hopes of a trophy-laden finish to their campaign and even the seemingly certain top-four position is now slipping away. Did you know that of all the top six sides, Tottenham's first-eleven have played more Premier League minutes than any other? Gareth Bale and Luka Modric – Spurs' two best players – have barely missed a league match – and it's begun to show as form has deteriorated at the most crucial of times. At one stage, Spurs held a 12-point lead over their rivals Arsenal but the back-end of this campaign has been nothing short of a nightmare as north London roles have reversed. From the first 19 games of the season, where Spurs had the third best points per game (PPG) in the league (2.21) they have slipped a full point lower in the following 14 league games (1.21). Across all 20 teams, it is the largest fall in form and only Liverpool come close with their PPG slipping by 0.93. It's not the first time this has happened but it is certainly the most concerning of Redknapp's reign. In this instance there are no mitigating circumstances such as the Champions League involvement that contributed towards a rotten run of one win in 10 Premier League games. Yet they are not far off that now. Spurs have won one in eight and not scored in their last three away games. Injuries are hitting the squad – Niko Kranjcar is out for the rest of the season and Younes Kaboul is sidelined with a knee complaint. Ledley King and William Gallas seem so fragile these days that even a stiff breeze is enough to induce a sweat on the brow of the club's doctors. So what! Spurs have great squad depth, right? Wrong. Last season that was certainly true. Chairman Daniel Levy acknowledged in his AGM statement in December 2011 that the success of 2009-10 and 2010-11 was due to the number of bodies at Spurs Lodge but he also ensured it was clear the squad needed to be 'streamlined.' The past summer saw seven first-team players (one on loan) depart and four (two on loan) arrive but it was the January window that created the biggest debates. Ryan Nelsen and Louis Saha – two experienced pros but the wrong side of 30 - joined the club for nothing whilst Roman Pavlyuchenko was sold and Steven Pienaar, Sebastien Bassong and Vedran Corluka were handed out on loan to grateful clubs. Spurs fans afforded the management the benefit of the doubt as the window shut. Sure, the club were unlikely to press home a push for a maiden Premier League title, but Champions League qualification should be sewn up by April. Or so they thought. Now we're in April and it's all gone bitterly wrong. Redknapp deserves any criticism that comes his way for significantly weakening the squad in the middle of the season (Levy is not blameless either). But he also deserves criticism for lacking faith in the rest of his 25-man squad. It is a mess and the manager knows it, publicly doubting the squad on Friday: “I wouldn't say we've got a stronger squad than Chelsea - no way - or a stronger squad than Liverpool come to that.” Not many supporters would agree with that assessment, however it has been so rare that a fringe player has been given a sustained chance in the first-team ahead of a player simply tired or out of form, that you could forgive the odd fan for siding with Redknapp. Oddly enough much of his early success at Spurs came through using the squad: Kranjcar scored some vital goals in the run-in to the 2009-10 season. Roman Pavlyuchenko was always a useful striker and no matter his flaws, could find the net when in the mood. In his hunt for a Premier League title and now allegedly auditioning for the England job, Redknapp appears to have forgotten what made him a wanted man in the first place. Bale and Modric have played 2766 and 2764 Premier League minutes respectively this year. That puts both of them in the top ten midfielders in the league for number of minutes played. Mikel Arteta (2588 minutes) is the only player from any of the sides above Spurs to feature in the top 15 and from their immediate rivals, only Newcastle’s Jonas Gutierrez (2855 minutes) leads Bale or Modric. Full-backs Kyle Walker and Benoit Assou-Ekotto – both culpable for lax defending at Wembley - have played over 30 league games this year. They haven't been rotated, because there is no-one to rotate them with. Spurs' rivals have had it tough with demanding European campaigns – Chelsea are currently feeling the fixture pinch – but there can be no debate that the ferocity in the tempo of Tottenham's play elevated the strain placed on Bale, Aaron Lennon, Modric, Scott Parker et al. Redknapp's 'attack, attack, attack' mentality is devastating with a fresh team and pacy wide-men. But you only had to look at Bale on Sunday to see that it was a struggle for him to get into second gear, let alone fifth. Quite possibly that is down to playing 90 minutes in 24 of the first 26 league games this year. The trip to a resurgent QPR looks to spell more danger at a point where Redknapp's squad are quite simply, out on their feet. Of course, should they rectify the situation, the manager will be lauded for his achievement of taking Spurs to Europe's top table twice in three years. However, I will leave you with this: how bad must things be to have David Bentley sitting on the bench?