LONDON -- Three quick thoughts from Tottenham's 1-0 Premier League win over Middlesbrough at White Hart Lane on Saturday.
1. Tottenham bypass Boro gridlock -- eventually
Last season, Tottenham Hotspur seemed the only team capable of catching Leicester City. This season, they seem the only team capable of catching Chelsea. On a day when Arsenal fell to a second successive defeat and Liverpool contrived to lose at Hull, Spurs did just about enough to beat Middlesbrough and reduce Chelsea's lead to nine points. Now all Mauricio Pochetinno's team have to do is maintain the pressure for three and a half months, make no mistakes whatsoever and pray that they don't somehow crash off the rails in the last three games again.