It wasn’t supposed to be like this. Not Sunday, and not this season. Tottenham Hotspur are in freefall. They are plummeting to earth without a parachute, and hoping West Ham can cushion their landing. The relegation fears are real.
The 2025-26 campaign was supposed to be the one when Spurs really pushed on. The Europa League triumph was expected to be the springboard for further success. They’d finally won. But at what cost? Out went Ange Postecoglou, and in came Thomas Frank. A steady hand on the tiller, or so it seemed.
To the Dane’s credit, it started off well enough. Spurs went blow-for-blow with Champions League winners PSG in the Super Cup. They were minutes away from a second European trophy in the space of three months. They beat Manchester City and West Ham in the opening weeks with ease. The north London side made a solid start to their Champions League campaign, beating Villarreal 1-0 in front of their fans.
The wheels, though, started to come off at the beginning of November. Spurs’ home form had already been called into question. Their sole league win in their opening four at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium came on the first weekend of the season against Burnley. It took a late Joao Palhinha equaliser against table footers Wolves to ensure they didn’t lose all of the subsequent three.
In a bid to correct their form, Frank called on the fans to back the team as Chelsea made the short trip across the capital. Spurs needed the supporters to drag them over the line. “We need the fans behind us,” the former Brentford head coach outlined. Reader, Spurs put in one of the worst performances of the season. That was the game the penny dropped for most. “I’m beginning to think that Thomas Frank was not the brilliant tactician I thought he was.”
Following that (un)eventful London Derby, the only way has been down for Spurs.
Since the start of November, Tottenham have beaten as many German teams as they have English sides. That would be somewhat forgivable if Spurs plied their trade in the Bundesliga.
Frank, unsurprisingly, was sacked last month. In came the master firefighter, Igor Tudor. To Dare is Tudor. The ultimate interim manager, who’d saved Udinese – twice – and hauled Lazio and Juventus to Europe with a final season flourish. Fans are yet to see the best of Tudor. Truth is, they probably never will.
Sunday’s 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest marked Spurs’ fifth defeat from his seven games in charge. They’ve lost to Arsenal, Fulham, Crystal Palace, and now the Tricky Trees in a relegation six-pointer. The only victory was a 3-2 win over Atletico Madrid in the Champions League. Spurs lost the two-legged tie 7-5. They won the battle but lost the war.
And with seven games to go, Spurs are very much staring into the abyss. Sunday was supposed to be the turning point. Spurs rescued a late point at Liverpool last week. The aforementioned home triumph of Atletico followed suit, a morale-boosting victory if you will.
Yet as Spurs have found out all too often this season, the Premier League and the Champions League are a whole different kettle of fish. The capital side won all five home European games this season. They’ve won twice in front of their fans in England’s top tier this term. Only a Sheffield Wednesday side in administration and on the receiving end of two points deductions have a worse home record than Spurs in the top four tiers of English football.
In truth, Spurs will have welcomed the international break, if only to ease the relentlessness of the season. It’s a chance to actually take stock of the perilous situation they find themselves in. Years of underspending, cutting corners and mismanagement are finally catching up on Spurs. The departure of Daniel Levy was supposed to usher in a new era with “The Lewis Family” in charge. A leopard, though, never changes its spots. ENIC have exhausted their patience with the fanbase.
The appointments of Vinai Venkatesham and Johan Lange were questionable on paper. In practise, they’ve arguably been the worst the club has ever made. And with Tudor unlikely to be in charge in time for the trip to Sunderland next month, the question on everyone’s lips is: what next for Tottenham?
It’s a question few, if any, can answer. If Tudor goes, who comes in? And how do they correct the club’s current predicament? Defeat to Forest extended Spurs’ winless streak in the league to 13 matches, their longest such run in 91 years, according to Squawka. Are there any positives the club can take?
Well, they have key personnel still to return from injury. Mohammed Kudus is expected back after the international break. Spurs have missed his spark down the flank. Despite not playing since the 1-1 draw with Sunderland in January, the Ghanaian still ranks fourth for successful dribbles (52) in the Premier League this season.
Rodrigo Bentancur will at least provide a semblance of experience in the middle of the park once he recovers from a hamstring issue. Saying that, we’re clutching at straws here.
This is very much a Spurs side in dire straits. “Every time I’ve seen the light at the end of the tunnel, it’s usually been an oncoming train,” Postecoglou said when he spoke of Tottenham’s injury crisis last season.
At least the Australian had hope. For Spurs fans, there is none. The tunnel has been plunged into darkness and is taking the north London powerhouse straight into the Championship.
