Tottenham are just a point away from securing Champions League football for next season. Antonio Conte and his side will travel to Carrow Road on Sunday, on the final day of the 2021/22 Premier League campaign, to play Norwich.
After Arsenal lost to Newcastle on Monday night, they have left Spurs in prime position to finish inside the top four. Not only will this mean the Lilywhites are back in the top European competition, it will also give them a boost in the upcoming transfer window.
The prospect of Champions League football is attractive for a number of players, especially those who may be coming from clubs who have been in the European competition this season. Once the campaign is over, Conte will need to work with Fabio Paratici and Daniel Levy to try and get the best possible players for his Tottenham squad.
READ MORE: Fabio Paratici told what Antonio Conte needs at Tottenham to solve midfield problem
First and foremost Spurs need to get themselves over the line and stay in the top four, for the final day of the season. After that, they can look to what is next.
Although Chelsea have struggled with some inconsistency, their three victories in one month against the Lilywhites indicated the gap in quality. At the top of the table, Manchester City and Liverpool show an even further gap, although that is where Conte will want his Tottenham team to end up.
Another massive aim for the Italian is to help Spurs end their 14-year trophy drought. Their chances of doing so will also hopefully be helped by some new arrivals.
However, it will be a big task to get adequate funds from Levy for the right transfers and not just the big names. With the success of Conte and patience from Tottenham to bring him in, it is now a vital time to back the one manager that is likely to be able to bring silverware to N17.
With a hopefully improved squad, Spurs will then look to next season and will want to finish it in an even higher place than in this campaign. Ahead of the summer window, ex-Tottenham striker and Betfair Ambassador Dimitar Berbatov, spoke exclusively to football.london on how far he believes his former club are from those at the top of the league.
"Every game is different than the previous one, every season is different. Yes sometimes you can have the same Champion but there is different circumstances surrounding all this," he explained.
"Maybe next season Spurs are going to build and get better. Maybe next season, City or Liverpool are going to drop a gear for reasons unknown and this can help Spurs go up there.
"Maybe City and Liverpool are going to go even higher and then it's more difficult to try and catch them. At the moment, the truth is City and Liverpool are the top tier in the way they play football and how they play football and every team should try and catch up to them. Spurs are on track with the manager they have because he has a clear idea of the team he wants to play and he doesn't shift constantly," Berbatov added.
The 41-year-old repeated a comment he had previously made to football.london, about the pressure on Tottenham. "If we leave Spurs in the shadow and don't put too much pressure on them to get that trophy or to perform, they will do better. Just leave them be, they work," he admitted.
"Of course they know they want to win something and sooner or later that will happen. I think Conte is probably the right man to do it."
Berbatov reiterates the gap in quality between Tottenham and the likes of Liverpool and Man City but another former Lilywhites player doesn't seem so optimistic about the closing of the gap. Teddy Sheringham has also told football.london how far away he believes his former side are from those at the top of the table, in an exclusive interview on behalf of Bookmakers.com.
"Wow. I would say they're miles off it yet," he said. "I think when you see the consistency of Liverpool and Manchester City, Tottenham have got to be signing four or five top players all different positions.
"You've got some great players playing at Tottenham but when you're looking at where Manchester City and Liverpool are, you can get another ten per cent on each player and then that brings the whole squad up. It's going to cost a lot of money to get in better players than they've already got but it can be done, you've just got to find them. You've got to get these players in early, before they do," Sheringham added.
As the 56-year-old alludes to, Spurs are going to have competition from a number of Premier League clubs for signings they want this summer. However, with the attraction of London, Tottenham's facilities, Conte and Champions League football, the Lilywhites will hopefully get some of those they target to help improve them in time for next season and start their journey to competing with those above them in the league.
For more from Betfair Ambassador, Dimitar Berbatov, head to: https://betting.betfair.com/football/
