Two games in a row against the "big four", two defeats. Like Man Utd, Chelsea are another team against whom Spurs have an appalling record, having failed to win at the Bridge in almost two decades. Chelsea went into the game on Saturday on top of the table and in top form, and yet for the first twenty minutes or so, Spurs created the better chances. The game seemed to turn on the injury to Ledley King and a hotly disputed penalty decision. Chelsea eventually ran out easy winners.

Harry Redknapp clearly saw the loss of King as a major contributing factor to the result, reflecting that "once we lost Ledley, we didn’t have the power to deal with Drogba at the back". That loss was compounded by an injury to Bassong later on, although thankfully it seems that he - unlike his partner in the Spurs back line - will shortly return to the side. In some sense, the manager is paying the price for continuing to gamble with King:

"Ledley is a problem and this time it was his hamstring. When you don’t train all week and then try to put yourself under pressure, it can aggravate other injuries. He’s the most fantastic person and player, and he’s so important for us, but if you don’t train you can’t just go out and play without doing hamstrings, groins or calves."

Worryingly, Redknapp also revealed that Jonathan Woodgate is "nowhere near playing again", and so it may be that the first of the three currently injured central defenders to return to the team will be the inconsistent Michael Dawson. Dawson is at his best with an experienced central defender alongside him - e.g. Ledley King - since his own decision making is so poor. In the short term, Corluka, who was weak against Chelsea, will almost certainly move into the middle.

As far as the penalty shout was concerned, Robbie Keane was clearly tripped and Howard Webb made a bad call. Yet a player as experienced as Keane should know that running after the referee brandishing an imaginary card was not likely to result in the decision being changed. Shortly after Keane’s histrionic protestations that he should have had either a booking or a spot-kick, Chelsea took the ball up the other end and scored. Last week the question was posed here as to whether or not the Irishman’s seemingly nailed-on place in the starting line-up is a function of his captaincy. If he is to be captain, he should learn to lead by example and not - as he has done on many occasions in the past - simply stop playing and throw a tantrum when a decision goes against him. That kind of petulance is best left to the likes of Terry, Ballack, Drogba, etc., etc.

Spurs now face Preston in the Carling Cup and surely Redknapp will use the opportunity to try out some different players and/or formations. The 4-3-3 against Chelsea did not work, allowing as it did Bosingwa in particular to bomb up and down the line at will. Hopefully the likes of Bale, Dos Santos and Naughton will be given a run-out against the Championship side and Kranjcar will get a start, rather than being used when an enforced substitution occurs. The Croatian - who would obviously have expected to fill Modric’s berth in midfield - must be wondering what kind of future he has at White Hart Lane. Roman Pavlyuchenko no doubt already has his suitcases packed.

After the cup tie, Spurs have an eminently winnable run of fixtures. A home game with Burnley is followed by a trip to Bolton, one of the worst teams in the Premier League. Spurs then travel to bottom club Portsmouth, before hosting Stoke, never as good away from the Britannia Stadium as at it. It’s not inconceivable, then, that Spurs could take maximum points from those four games, and consolidate their position in the top six. So, for now at least, fingers off the panic button.