Champions Manchester United put paid to some of the early-season hyperbole surrounding Spurs after they had won their first four Premier League games.   Talk of challenging for a top-four place and foolishly premature comparisons with the 1961 double-winning side, who won their first eleven league games that season, subsided after Harry Redknapp’s team crashed 3-1 at the Lane to a Manchester United side down to ten men after midfielder Paul Scholes’ sending-off.   The Lilywhites face a further stiff test of their top-four potential when they visit Stamford Bridge on Sunday.   Tottenham famously gained only two points from their first eight games under Juande Ramos last season, but one of them was from a 0-0 draw at the Bridge.

However, Luka Modric will be missing from Sunday’s line-up thanks to the right-fibula fracture he suffered in the win against Birmingham at the end of last month.

Spurs may, however, be boosted by the news that first-choice goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes is in line for a return to first-team duty.

 

The Brazilian custodian has missed four games since picking up a groin injury in the emphatic 5-1 victory at Hull but was on the bench last Saturday.   And following an influential display as a second-half substitute against Manchester United, Jermaine Jenas is in line for a first start of the season having recovered from a calf injury.   Off-the-field, too, the club is making steady progress. Just as the Premier League has introduced rules governing minimum requirements for “home-grown” players in their clubs’ squads, so Tottenham have launched work on their new £30m state-of-the-art training facilities in Hertfordshire.

At the launch, Levy said: “The money has already been raised. We arranged the facilities some years ago so it is financed ring-fenced.

“It will have no impact whatsoever on anything else to do with the club.”

As usual, there are stories surrounding the possible departure of Robbie Keane during the next transfer window. Talk has centred on a possible £7m bid from Glasgow giants Celtic, with Redknapp interested in landing the Bhoys midfielder Scott Brown in return.

The 29-year-old Irishman is a popular figure with Celtic fans. He received a very warm reception from the travelling Glasgow faithful before August’s Wembley Cup game between the sides – in sharp contrast to the ‘welcome’ afforded Spurs’ former Rangers right-back Alan Hutton.

And Brown has long been among Redknapp’s extensive list of targets.

The Mirror reported that Keane’s wages would be the major obstacle to a deal but that Celtic’s “wealthy Irish backers” would be prepared to free up the necessary funds having done so to land Keane’s namesake Roy four years ago.