Tottenham's European destiny could all depend on how things pan out for Ryan Mason's side over the next seven days. Too far away from a Champions League place unless there is a major twist in the tale in what remains of the season, Spurs will be hoping to tie up a top-sixth finish and secure a Europa League spot that comes with it.
If not, the Lilywhites may well find themselves back in the Europa Conference League for the second time in three seasons or there is the possibility that they miss out on European football altogether. The uncertainty over European football has prompted quite the debate amongst fans over whether a year out of Europe would be beneficial, with Spurs defender Ben Davies making his stance perfectly clear when asked the question following the 1-0 win over Crystal Palace.
"Our aspiration is to play in European football and be involved in as many competitions as we can," admitted Davies. "We have the squad, we have the number of players, so it’s probably necessary that we are. Our aim is to go as far as we can in every competition. Any European competition is important for us."
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Acting head coach Mason was also asked in his pre-match press conference on Friday about whether it matters which European competition Spurs qualify for next season. While some may turn their nose up at the Europa Conference League, the 31-year-old believes that Jose Mourinho has helped give that competition "a real status" after winning it with Roma 12 months ago.
"I think we're in a moment where we just need to try to finish as high as possible and get as many results as we can in these next three games and then see where we are," he said. "Hopefully that will be in Europe. Ultimately competition is competition and it would be very wrong for any club to speak badly about a competition you want to win.
"To be perfectly honest, I think Jose Mourinho has done an incredible job in giving that competition [Europa Conference League] a real status, a real importance. That was probably quite important that that did happen. So whoever is in Europe, we're seeing with West Ham right now there is a desire to win."
Daniel Levy would no doubt also agree that European football is a must for Tottenham, especially given the finances that comes along with it.
In a battle with Brighton & Hove Albion and Aston Villa for European football, the coming days will have a huge say on who competes in which competition and who misses out completely. Now facing three Premier League games before the season comes to an end, Tottenham travel to Villa Park to take on Aston Villa on Saturday afternoon.
The outcome of the game in the Midlands could prove pivotal to who plays in Europe or not as three points separate the sides at present. A win for Tottenham and Villa would find themselves six points behind Spurs heading into the final two games with an inferior goal difference, whereas a win for the hosts and it would be all to play for as they go into their final games level on points.
As things stand, Brighton separate the sides but they find themselves two points behind Tottenham and one ahead of Villa. However, Roberto De Zerbi's men crucially have two games in hand. The favourites out of the trio to secure a top-six berth, the Seagulls have some extremely tricky fixtures on the agenda as they look to finish a brilliant season on a high.
One of those daunting fixtures comes on Sunday when they make the trip to north London to take on Arsenal. Needing to bounce back from their 5-1 humbling against Everton on Monday, Brighton really are going to have to be at the top of their game to collect points from the Emirates as the Gunners need to win to stay in touch with Man City in the title race.
The first of Brighton's two games in hand then comes next Thursday when they come up against Eddie Howe's Newcastle United in the north east. The Magpies are on course for a Champions League finish after an incredible season but they now have Liverpool waiting to pounce on any slip-ups after hitting top form at such a crucial time in the campaign.
Failure to win at Arsenal and Newcastle United and Brighton will hand Tottenham a huge boost going into their final two fixtures, providing of course that they secure a positive result at Aston Villa. The tough matches don't end there for De Zerbi's men, however, as their second game in hand sees title favourites Man City visit the Amex before they're are on the road themselves on the final day as they visit Aston Villa.
That match in the Midlands could potentially be a straight shootout for a European spot if the race for Europe goes down to the wire. Arsenal and Newcastle can play a pivotal role over the next week in Tottenham achieving a top-six finish but it is all going to come down to Spurs doing their job first and foremost.
The Lilywhites certainly have the better run of fixtures compared to Brighton and Villa but consistency is a must for Mason and his team. That hasn't been the case over the course of the campaign, though, as Spurs would be competing for Champions League places had it not been for a dire run of results.
The stoppage-time draws at Southampton and Everton really could come back to haunt them, with the home defeat against Bournemouth and the away losses at Leicester City and Wolves also going to prove so costly indeed. Tottenham cannot do anything to fix those results now and the focus has to be getting the job done in the remaining fixtures against Aston Villa, Brentford and Leeds United.
Needing a helping hand along the way from teams if they are to compete in next season's Europa League, Tottenham need to help themselves first of all and make sure they are in the best possible position for the top six.
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