Antonio Conte’s side suffered defeat at home against Southampton in midweek in what was a big blow to their ambitions of playing Champions League football next term.
They are again at home this afternoon, with Bruno Lage’s Wolves the visitors in another Premier League contest.
Tottenham currently sit in seventh in the league standings, four points behind fourth placed West Ham and fifth placed Manchester United, though they boast three games in hand.
Former Spurs midfielder Murphy thinks that defeat at home against Wolves is simply not an option as it would end their top four hopes.
“Tottenham could afford one home defeat against Southampton in the top-four race because a lot of the other contenders have been inconsistent”, Murphy wrote in his Daily Mail column.
“But a second against Wolves would surely end their chances.
“Spurs have definitely improved under Antonio Conte, with the return of Son Heung-Min a big influence.
“But the Italian is clever enough to dampen expectations, which is why he’s been saying it’s a long journey to reach the top.
“He’s smart enough to know that this season fourth place is up for grabs because of the fragility of the competition.”
Spurs added Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur to their squad in the January transfer window and Conte has admitted they could start against Wolves.
