It's too early to speculate… but it's a forgone conclusion

Two games into the Premier League campaign most bar room discussions are spoilt by the phrase, "We'll see, there's a long way to go." 

Of course we'll see, and of course there's a long way to go but 'tis the season to be speculative, so I'll to stick my neck out and say that I think Chelsea and Wigan will remain in their current positions (1st and 20th) for the whole season.

Wigan are no strangers to a relegation scrap and their time may finally be up. Many admired chairman Dave Whelan for gambling on the  young and largely unproven Roberto Martinez from Swansea City prior to the start of the 2009/10 season.

Martinez's Wigan made an unpredictable start last season, beating Villa  and Chelsea yet losing to newly promoted Wolves. Now it seems they have finally found some consistency - they're always rubbish.

Whipping boys

Rarely does an established Premier League side get labelled a season's "whipping boys", but Wigan went on to lose 4-0 to Portsmouth, Bolton and Arsenal, 5-0 twice to United, 8-0 to Chelsea and 9-1 to Spurs. 

It's often noted that it's not the games against the big teams that will keep a side up but it's clear that Wigan know how to drop their heads and, having conceded 10 goals in two games so far this season, the damage may already done. They'll not be looking forward to the prospect of facing Spurs at White Hart Lane this Saturday.

The top of the table is a somewhat different matter; so closely matched are Chelsea and Manchester United. However, with Carlo Ancelotti's free-scoring Blues enjoying a straightforward start to the season, they already find themselves two points in front with a goal difference of +12.

Perfect start

Ancelotti claimed that last season's title was won in the first six games, during which his side made a perfect start, and Manchester United dropped only 3 points - away at Burnley - and eventually just a single point separated the top two.

Chelsea's next three fixtures pit them against Stoke, who they beat 7-0 last time, West Ham and Blackpool. But, by the time they visit Manchester City for their first real test on September 25, United will have had to face both Liverpool and Everton.

Obviously, an easy start means the rest of Chelsea's season will be all the more difficult. But having hit the ground running, the Blues' bandwagon will be difficult to stop and, with Sir Alex Ferguson showing increasing faith in ageing, evergreen players, his United side could find it just as difficult to keep up.

Will long-term inconsistencies come back to haunt Spurs?

Hunter Davies' novel The Glory Game gives a behind-the-scenes account of a season with Tottenham Hotspur Football Club in the early 1970s. The book is still thought to hold relevance today as, despite the ever-changing world of football, many core aspects remain the same; rising wages, dodgy refereeing decisions, dressing room banter etc.

In the book, written in 1972, Alan Mullery says: "With Spurs, I think we could do with a bit more of the killer instinct. Players will go out on the field when we're playing sides at the bottom of the league in a sort of complacent frame of mind."

Anyone who watched the Champions League qualifier between Spurs and Young Boys will know exactly what I'm getting at here; 40 years ago, Tottenham were prone to underestimating the opposition. Last Tuesday indicated that nothing much has changed.

So, can Spurs fans take any positives at all from Tuesday night? Well, yes actually...

1. The result - It couldn't be better really. We two away goals and the fact we're still one goal down could work in our favour. The manner of the result wasn't ideal but the side now know we have to go out to attack and not defend, which means we can play to our strengths. As Spurs fans, we will be only too aware that any sort of lead, especially a comfortable one, at this stage is a dangerous thing. 

2. Pav's finish - Roman Pavlyuchenko was one of a number of players to have a terrible game on Tuesday. He looked lazy, off the pace and couldn't hold his own the ball up. But his explosive finish for our second goal was a great encouragement. Precise, powerful and when we desperately needed it. We just need to see it a bit more often.

3. Timely reminder- Bemoaning the pitch or the preparation is neither here nor there. Our boys choked under the pressure on Tuesday. We never expected Young Boys to be able to pass around us and their opener was a shock that nearly knocked us for six. But, having been out of Europe's elite competition for so long, it's an important lesson to learn early on. Everyone is a threat. Hopefully it'll stand us in good stead.

4. It's still progress - Just to sign off, I thought it worth pointing this out. In three of the last five seasons, Spurs have finished 5th or higher. Prior to 2005/06, our highest-ever Premier League finish was 7th. To not qualify for the Champions League proper would be a major disappointment but we're clearly headed very much in the right direction...

Let's just hope that Alan Mullery's words don't ring true once again come Wednesday night.

Premier League opener puts football back in safe hands

Prior to Saturday's Premier League opener, you would have been forgiven for forgetting just what football is about.

After a summer dogged by whining and controversy, think vuvuzelas, goalkeeping blunders, boring football and bizarre refereeing decisions, Spurs v Man City came as a welcome reminder of what we'd all been missing.

Attacking football, played in a red hot atmosphere with an audience blissfully unaware of the man with the whistle, so seldom did he make a peep.

Referee Andre Marriner was an asset in his ambiguity, leaving the game to flow and giving rise to a forgotten spectacle as a goalkeeper was the star of the show.

City's usual keeper Shay Given may be trusty old padlock, well-versed at keeping intruders at bay, but Joe Hart proved to be a hackproof new-age security system in City's defensive firewall.

Following a summer of dropped crosses and goal-line gaffes, the Premier League looked set to banish the World Cup hangover for good.

Until Sunday, that is, when Joe Cole's red card and Jose Reina's howler provided some hair of the dog to keep us all from getting carried away.