Tottenham Hotspur Look More Like Their Old Selves in Thrashing of Swansea City

WHITE HART LANE, London — Dividing football seasons up is open to interpretation. Whether month-by-month, season-by-season or something more within the parameters of the sport, there are blocks in the campaign offering both unwelcome interruptions and fresh starts.

Tottenham Hotspur suffered from the former when an international break followed an invigorating win over title rivals Manchester City in October. After a tough couple of months and three high-pressure London derbies, they are hoping Saturday’s 5-0 thrashing of Swansea City signals the start of the latter.

This is not to underplay what is ahead for manager Mauricio Pochettino and his side, looking more like their old selves in this comfortable victory.

A win in their final Champions League group match against CSKA Moscow would at least end an otherwise disappointing campaign on a high note. Securing a place in the Europa League ahead of the Russian outfit is also important in keeping alive a chance of silverware and an accompanying Champions League place, not to mention further opportunities to adjust to temporary venue Wembley Stadium ahead of next season’s scheduled full-time stay.

Following that in the Premier League is a mouthwatering fixture away at Manchester United. Pochettino’s Spurs had some good battles with Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea prior to his leaving, and similar will be expected against the Portuguese’s inconsistent but exceptionally talented Red Devils team.

After exiting the Champions League and suffering a winless run only punctuated by the dramatic comeback win over West Ham United a fortnight earlier, Tottenham needed this against Swansea. It was the perfect start to a period that the significance of which is seemingly not lost on the players.

The perfect response to last weekend, big month ahead! #COYS pic.twitter.com/PJHBJxq7Qn

— Eric Dier (@ericdier) December 3, 2016

Post-match Eric Dier, again playing at centre-back in the absence of Toby Alderweireld, referenced the recent 2-1 loss to league leaders Chelsea. Although only Tottenham’s first defeat in the competition, coupled with their previous dry run, it has left them needing a strong Christmas to keep up with the division’s pacesetters.

This is another of those season-dividing moments, quite often one of its most important.

Excel during this packed schedule, and Spurs could be right among the contenders by the time they face Antonio Conte’s men again on 4 January. Underwhelm, and their year quickly loses a lot of its optimism.

Swansea took the brunt of this all-around refocusing on Spurs’ part.

“Today was a different kind of test,” manager Bob Bradley said, looking back to their thrilling 5-4 win over Crystal Palace a week earlier. “And for sure in part it’s because Tottenham have gone through a stretch where they weren’t totally satisfied, so today they really came after us in a strong way.”

The north Londoners reaction to this unsatisfying stretch could be seen at its tail end. For a good 40 minutes on Nov. 26, they challenged and resisted the in-form Chelsea.

There was more intensity to their offensive engagement, in and out of possession, than had been seen since the Man City win. After the abject display against AS Monaco, there was improvement in their defensive work too.

That Spurs could not …

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