Spurs sit two points behind City with five matches remaining after their pulsating 3-3 draw with Arsenal at White Hart Lane.
A win against their neighbours would have drawn Tottenham level with Roberto Mancini's men, who have their tails up after dumping Manchester United out of the FA Cup last weekend.
With Liverpool seemingly out of the hunt for fourth, the battle for the final Champions League qualification position mirrors last year's contest - when Spurs overtook their rich north-west rivals by claiming four wins from their last six games, with one of those victories coming at Eastlands.
With Mancini having parted with over ?150million to help him succeed where he failed last year, Crouch feels the onus is on the Italian and his team rather than Spurs.
"They're under more pressure than we are," Crouch said. "That doesn't make us have any less desire to get in there but we have probably got a bit more freedom than them."
Source: PA
Source: PA