Leeds United are 15th in the Premier League, sitting four points above the drop zone with seven games left to secure survival.
It hasn’t been pretty, though. The Whites are winless in six and haven’t found the net for over 400 minutes, a run that has spanned more than a month.
Even so, the sides below them haven’t taken advantage, which has allowed Leeds to cling on to a narrow but valuable cushion above the bottom three.
Tottenham Hotspur’s poor form had made them look like genuine relegation candidates, but the decision to sack Igor Tudor on Sunday suggests they’re trying to spark a turnaround, and the talks with Roberto De Zerbi are alarming.
Leeds boosted with Tottenham hero, unsure about Roberto De Zerbi now
Tottenham have offered a hefty survival bonus to try and convince De Zerbi to take charge of Spurs ahead of their next Premier League game.
He is a highly-rated coach despite his troubled tenure at Marseille, and even Tim Sherwood is a fan of the Italian and the brand of football his team plays.
The former Spurs boss conceded that the Italian was his pick as well to become the permanent Spurs boss, but insisted that he is not the man for a rescue job.
He insisted that De Zerbi’s brand of football could be detrimental for a team trying to survive in the Premier League, and he is far from a safe pair of hands.
Sherwood said on Sky Sports: “He has got so little time.
“For anyone going in there, you have to put a question mark because there are only seven games left.
“I like his personality, and I said many months ago that he should be the man coming in from Tottenham.
“I would have picked him over Pochettino for the long-term.
“He plays the style that Tottenham fans want, and he opens up the pitch, but not now.
“That style is not needed right now. What they need is a safe pair of hands, and this is far from a safe pair of hands.
“I love the way his teams play, but they can be open; they can get hammered in some games.
“You can’t get hammered from now until the end of the season.”
The Whites need to take control of their own destiny
Leeds have continued to maintain a buffer over teams in the relegation zone despite not winning any of their last six Premier League games.
Wolves and Burnley are almost certain to go down, and West Ham, Tottenham and Forest have not done enough to bring Leeds closer to the relegation zone.
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | Leeds United | 31 | 7 | 12 | 12 | 37 | 48 | -11 | 33 |
| 16 | Nottingham Forest | 31 | 8 | 8 | 15 | 31 | 43 | -12 | 32 |
| 17 | Tottenham Hotspur | 31 | 7 | 9 | 15 | 40 | 50 | -10 | 30 |
| 18 | West Ham United | 31 | 7 | 8 | 16 | 36 | 57 | -21 | 29 |
| 19 | Burnley | 31 | 4 | 8 | 19 | 33 | 61 | -28 | 20 |
| 20 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 31 | 3 | 8 | 20 | 24 | 54 | -30 | 17 |
However, the Hammers have shown signs of form in recent weeks, and Spurs hope that if De Zerbi agrees to take charge, they will move out of trouble in the coming weeks.
This will mean more pressure on Leeds, and they finally need to win a couple of games soon to push towards Premier League safety.
The Whites cannot afford to depend on the results of the other teams to remain safe and need to take charge of their own destiny soon.
