Aston Villa draw means Tottenham have no Arsenal dilemma – they must go for it against Man City

As the nine minutes of added time was announced at Villa Park, the tension was palpable.

Not from the Aston Villa fans, who having come back from 3-1 down sensed an opportunity to grab the victory which would secure Champions League football.

Not from the visiting Liverpool supporters, who were as demob happy as their manager and those away players who came to Birmingham to have a bit of fun with the ball while making it optional to show the necessary application necessary to win it back.

All the nervous anxiety was being transmitted from 100 miles away in North London as Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur supporters found themselves in the peculiar position of being on common ground, fearing a late Villa winner.

For Ange Postecoglou, the last chance of making the top four looked like it would be snuffed out every time Liverpool generously gifted possession on the edge of their penalty area.

For Mikel Arteta, there was the possibility of witnessing the final demotivation for his neighbours before they face Manchester City on Tuesday night. Jurgen Klopp had once circled this fixture as having consequences for the title race. He had not anticipated such an indirect influence as Liverpool’s draw potentially kept Arsenal’s fading hopes intact.

This was one of the two results Pep Guardiola did not want.

Spurs may still get hammered by the defending champions, but at least they still have Uefa’s mega millions to play for. If they fail, surely it will not be for the want of both players and fans trying?

No self-respecting club of Spurs’ stature can sacrifice the Champions League riches – and all those short-term or long-term consequences – because of the possible consequences for the bitter rivals.

There is no dilemma for anyone with Spurs’ interest at heart now. The idea that their proud captain, Son Heung-Min, will not stretch every sinew to be part of the European elite again is an insult.

Had Villa won, for sure football tribalism guaranteed a dilemma, with supporters torn and players destined to play in a surreal atmosphere.

The meaning behind those white flags carried by the fans into the Tottenham Hotspur stadium would have been open to interpretation.

Villa rightly celebrated their draw at full-time. By the last acts of a chaotic match, they were content to take what they had, having looked beaten on 85 minutes only to score in successive attacks. Like the rest of the country, they are entitled to presume City will dominate the ball, collect the points and march on to their fourth consecutive championship, thus rewarding Unai Emery with the chance to follow the path last travelled by Ron Saunders and Tony Barton.

“We’ve enjoyed the season here, we’ve had a lot of emotions,” Emery told the crowd.

“This is for you, you were always supporting us. Today we didn’t finish. The last match is at Crystal Palace on Sunday... to get to the end, to play Champions League.

“This is very important. For us, the club, the players, for me.”

But the deserved lap of appreciation cannot disguise the truth that the door is ajar for Spurs, especially as Villa have a tough final day at Selhurst Park.

Should Spurs somehow beat City tomorrow, the broadcasters will have the final day they craved, with jeopardy at the top and in the pursuit of fourth.

Klopp’s observation on his final away game as Liverpool manager was informative.

“We all saw these games before where one team is playing for everything and another is fixed in their position,” he said.

In contrast to the madness at Villa Park on Monday, both Premier League clubs have their season’s ambitions on the line on Tuesday.