Tottenham rank among the bottom five in a key statistic, which could help explain their poor Premier League form this season.Tottenham Hotspur fans will be hoping that the Lilywhites’ poor start to the 26-27 Premier League season is only a blip and that results will improve in the coming months.A run of five games without a win in the league is far from encouraging, and things must change quickly for Roberto De Zerbi’s side if they are to avoid another relegation scrap for the second season running.Pressure is beginning to mount on the Tottenham manager, but history suggests Spurs could eventually recover, as some sides who have endured similarly poor starts in the past have gone on to secure respectable league finishes.TeamGames without a goalPremier League finishCrystal Palace 17/18711thSheffield Wednesday 94/95413thNewcastle 05/0647thSwansea 11/12411thAston Villa 25/2644thTottenham 26/274TBCCredit: oscar.visualss / InstagramTottenham’s distance stats highlight key flawStatistics from FotMob now show that Tottenham are lacking in one particular area, which could help explain their poor start to the season.The data analytics platform has compiled a list of distances covered by clubs in the Premier League, ranking them from best to worst, and Spurs find themselves near the bottom.According to their analysis, Tottenham sit 15th for distance covered per match, averaging 112.1km per game. That places them in the same zone as Liverpool, Manchester City, Aston Villa, Coventry and Manchester United.City and Liverpool being so low on the list is not entirely surprising given how much they dominate possession, which reduces the need to cover as much ground.United, Villa and Coventry have been poor this campaign and find themselves in the bottom half alongside Tottenham.Premier League Table vs Distance Covered RankingsPL RankTeamDistance CoveredDistance Rank1Manchester City11.2 km18th2Arsenal18.7 km1st3Brighton & Hove Albion14.3 km10th4Brentford17.5 km3rd5Leeds United14.6 km9th6Liverpool10.3 km20th7Everton13.6 km12th8Hull City14.2 km11th9Newcastle United14.9 km6th10Chelsea13.5 km13th11Ipswich Town14.8 km7th12Manchester United11.9 km16th13Nottingham Forest12.5 km14th14Sunderland14.7 km8th15Crystal Palace15.2 km5th16Aston Villa11.5 km17th17AFC Bournemouth15.4 km4th18Coventry City10.5 km19th19Fulham18.5 km2nd20Tottenham Hotspur12.1 km15thVan Hecke points out Spurs’ energy issuesJan Paul van Hecke appears to agree with this flaw in Tottenham’s game, as the Dutchman was brutally honest in his assessment of Spurs’ performance against Aston Villa – a game the Lilywhites lost 3-2.According to the £52 million-rated centre-back, Tottenham’s energy drained away, and that was simply not good enough.He said: “We had imagined it would be different. The way we play and concede goals is unacceptable. The way the energy drained away from the team is simply not right.”Spurs are now set to face Manchester United after the three-week international break – one of the sides to have covered the fewest distances in the league this season.Fulham gave United a tough test last time out, covering 6.5km more than Michael Carrick’s side and securing a draw.No doubt, De Zerbi’s men will be looking to put in the hard yards against United as they go in search of their first league win, and that may well require covering more distance.READ MORE: Tottenham have two fixtures moved for TV, including another Saturday 12:30 kick-offThe post Tottenham stats reveal distance flaw as Jan Paul van Hecke calls out energy issues appeared first on Spurs Web.