Jermaine Jenas exclusive: Steely Spurs no longer reliant on Harry Kane

There was one thing Tottenham fans feared above all else last season, and now it has happened. Harry Kane is injured, possibly for up to 10 weeks. But what last year would have been regarded as the ultimate title-deciding disaster has this year been greeted with a sense of cautious optimism. Spurs have got stronger, and they are now far better equipped to cope without their main goalscorer.

Funnily enough, it's Arsenal fans who will be most familiar with that feeling of being over-reliant on a particular player. Olivier Giroud and Francis Coquelin, while maybe not the Gunners' star men, have been indispensable for Arsene Wenger because they have performed roles where there is no like-for-like replacement.

Spurs would have been in that position if they had lost Kane last season, but they were lucky. This time around they have added firepower in the form of Vincent Janssen, although that's not necessarily the thing that makes them stronger.

So far I have not seen too much from Janssen apart from hard work. Mauricio Pochettino had to strike a balance when he signed a striker in the summer, finding someone who was simultaneously good enough to challenge Kane while being content to be second-choice. Janssen fits that bill, but Spurs may have to wait a while until they see the best of him.

Therefore, with Kane out, the onus is more on those three players who operate behind the striker.

Christian Eriksen, Erik Lamela and especially Dele Alli had excellent campaigns last year, while Son Heung-min has started this one on fire, so the gauntlet has been laid down for them to chip in with 8-10 goals this season.

In fact the onus was already on those players, because Kane starting the season very slowly before his injury. (Bearing in mind he did the same thing last year and then went on to get the Golden Boot.)

But the main reason Spurs are less reliant on Kane is not because of their personnel in attack or midfield; it's because they are so strong defensively.

Pochettino is using pretty much the same back four as last season, but they have gained an extra year of experience and they look even more solid. They're the type of team that can stick it out and nick a 1-0, or even a 0-0 if it's necessary.

Even against Middlesbrough this weekend when Boro pulled it back to 2-1, a few years ago I don't think Spurs would have held on to win the game. But at the Riverside they didn't once look like they would let it slip. They were in full control.

You're more reliant on a player like Kane when you need to win 3-2 away from home, but at the moment Spurs don't.

Victor Wanyama also strengthens them in the centre of the park, although his value to the squad will partly depend on his attitude.

Nobody likes sitting on the bench, especially not an established top flight player like Wanyama, but he will have to accept it a lot of the time because I don't see him in Tottenham's first-choice midfield. For me, that's still Eric Dier and Mousa Dembele. Plus, Wanyama certainly shouldn't be playing alongside Dier because they are too similar.

Right now Pochettino is going through this squad and tying them down to better, longer contracts, and that's because it's a group of players that is coming to its peak age. They are progressing individually and as a group, and last season's title run-in will stand them in good stead too. This time, they will know what it takes to go the distance. Last year it was unknown territory.

The game that convinced me Spurs would be championship contenders was the 1-1 draw against Liverpool at White Hart Lane.

Tottenham should have lost that game. They didn't play well enough and Liverpool were brilliant, but Spurs stayed in the game and managed to get a result from what was probably their worst, most lethargic performance in the past 18 months (well, bar the Newcastle match in May).

Those are the types of results that win you titles. Looking at what Liverpool have done to Arsenal, Chelsea and Leicester this season, it's clear they are at the peak of their powers. But Spurs held them.

We'll have to wait another few weeks to have a better idea of how the title race might pan out. So far the six teams that were expected to challenge - Man City, Man Utd, Chelsea, Arsenal, Tottenham and Liverpool - are all up there, although Chelsea have slipped up recently.

But thanks to more outstanding pre-season work from Pochettino, Spurs have got off their best start to a season for more than 50 years - and the most encouraging thing in terms of their title hopes is that they aren't even at their best yet.