Jose Mourinho has warned that Tottenham must be "patient and calm" in the Premier League title race ahead of this weekend's North London Derby.
Tottenham can return to the top of the table if they pick up a home win against arch-rivals Arsenal on Sunday.
Mourinho's men are a point behind leaders Chelsea having played a game less, and they currently boast the best defensive record in the division with only nine goals conceded in their opening ten fixtures.
Spurs haven't suffered a top-flight defeat since their opening weekend loss to Everton, with a run of six wins and three draws raising the levels of optimism among supporters.
Mourinho is being tipped to bring the club's long wait for silverware to an end after overseeing such an impressive start to the 2020-21 campaign, but the Portuguese is not getting carried away by his team's position in the early standings.
"If the talk outside is positive talk, we have to be patient and calm and not excited," the 57-year-old tactician told Sky Sports. "If the talk is negative and critical, we cannot be affected by that either.
"We have to be cool, we have to keep a balance and give everything we have, always, and at the end of the season we will see what happens."
Arsenal are eight points adrift of Spurs at the moment, but Mourinho says Mikel Arteta's men have proved they can compete with the very best teams over the past 11 months.
"To me, they are a very good team that had a big improvement last season," he said of the challenge the Gunners will pose his side.
"This season if you look at Manchester United versus Arsenal or if you look at Liverpool versus Arsenal - even though they lost - you realise they can beat anyone. They are quite versatile, they can play in different ways.
"Personally I think they will go back to what they were a few months ago, playing with a back five and being much more defensive because that was the way they beat Manchester City and Chelsea in the FA Cup semi-final and final. They are going to be a difficult opponent."