Brad Friedel

LONDON: Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel feels the race for Champions League qualification will be close despite the top four having a "familiar look".

For all the talk of Tottenham, Manchester City and Aston Villa breaking into the elite, Liverpool's recent form means the summit of the table includes the four heavyweights who have not seen their dominance broken since 2005 when Everton pipped their rivals.

There could be more twists and turns this season as results have been so unpredictable — another unexpected scoreline was Spurs and Villa recording a goalless draw at White Hart Lane on Saturday despite the attacking players on display. American Friedel, who was Villa's hero with a string of good saves to deny Spurs, believes the race is still alive.

"I can't remember it being this tight for the Champions League places. It used to be the top two going away then the next two on their own. It'll be different this time," he said.

"I would think it will go to the end, looking at the results this season. Clubs are dropping points and it's going to make it exciting."

Spurs have dropped points at home to Stoke, Wolves and Hull this season and their fans have turned on Harry Redknapp's team - but this time they accused Villa of being "boring".

But the north London club simply could not find a way past Richard Dunne and James Collins — and when they did Friedel was at his dependable best. The only surprise was Redknapp keeping Eidur Gudjohnsen on the bench rather than bringing his new signing on to support Peter Crouch and Jermain Defoe.

"It's funny because a lot of their attacks came from long balls up to Crouch, who headed it down to Defoe," said Friedel. "So I'm not quite sure where they (Spurs fans) are coming from."

At the other end, Ledley King played his fourth Premier League game in a row and kept Gabriel Agbonlahor quiet with a number of well-timed challenges. King cannot play matches in quick succession due to a chronic knee condition but is hoping to play a key part in Spurs' run-in after coming so close to a Champions League place four years ago.

"I think we've got a stronger squad than them," said King. "You've seen the likes of David Bentley and Gareth Bale coming in and they're playing great, and they've added to the team, and that's the beauty of having the kind of squad we've got.

"We believe we can still do it, it's going to go down to the wire, but the best team at the end of the day will get fourth spot."

King's knee problems denied him a return to the England fold last season despite manager Fabio Capello being an admirer of the centreback. King himself would relish the chance of playing in the Champions League next season should Spurs get in the top four.

"For the last few years I've felt the club's always been going in the right direction, and finally we've got a manager who hopefully can do that for us," said King.