Tottenham Hotspur captain Hugo Lloris has admitted that his side must consolidate their position in the top four before they can think about challenging for the Premier League title this season.
Tottenham's 2-0 defeat at the hands of North London rivals Arsenal on Saturday saw Mauricio Pochettino's side drop down to fourth place in the table, with 11 points now separating them from leaders Manchester City.
Lloris acknowledged that City are too far clear to worry about them at this stage of the season and is instead focused on ensuring that his side qualify for next season's Champions League.
"Before we think about City it's important to stay in the top four. This is the main target for our team. We heard from outside that Tottenham play for the title, blah, blah, blah. The most important thing is to stay consistent in the League," he told reporters.
"We have been in the top four the last two years and we need to carry on, to settle the club in this position and try to get more experience because the team is still young, then reduce the gap with the best. Obviously the future for Tottenham will be bright if we keep the same mentality. It's our ambition, but step by step.
"It's true that we wanted to do more against Manchester United and Arsenal. Unfortunately we couldn't do that so now it's important to have a run of victories because we need to keep our place at the top."
Tottenham are back in action against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
Barney Corkhill
