If Tottenham Hotspur are going to preserve their Premier League status this season, they are going to have to do it the hard way, fighting tooth and nail over the final weeks of the season.
In fairness to Roberto De Zerbi, he has had an impact on this struggling squad, with the performance against Brighton last weekend a testament to that, even if deeply-embedded habits prevented Tottenham from celebrating Xavi Simons' special strike as a winner.
Two points behind West Ham United and trailing Nottingham Forest by a further three, 18th-place Spurs are in purgatory all right, and De Zerbi needs to hit his team selection with pinpoint accuracy if the Londoners are going to play at the highest level next season.
Time is running out, and tough choices must be made. However, with Rodrigo Bentancur back in the starting line-up after injury (and with James Maddison ostensibly fit after his long-term layoff), the head coach can drop Yves Bissouma next time out.
Why De Zerbi must drop Bissouma at Spurs
Bissouma, 29, is out of contract at the end of the season, and even if Tottenham pull off an escape act, it doesn't seem very likely that the Mali international will extend his stay down N17.
Opportunities have been few and far between for Bissouma this season. He has been injured on numerous occasions and missed a chunk of the winter period due to the African Cup of Nations.
Against Brighton, he was one of the bigger underperformers, unable to channel the physicality that has formed the core of his midfield skillset over the years.
The 29-year-old is a talented centre-midfielder, well seasoned in the Premier League, but he's left too much to be desired for too long, and many fans will questIon why he has not been offloaded at some stage over the past several years.
Bissouma lost all of his ground duels on Saturday and lacked any kind of progression in possession. He is not quite match fit, of course, but De Zerbi can ill-afford to wait for the tough-tackler to get back up to speed.
It's time for Bissouma to return to the bench, with another Spurs star surely capable of taking his place across the closing weeks and indeed the next several years.
Spurs' "young Declan Rice" could end Bissouma's N17 career
Tottenham have plenty of talent in their first-team, but things just haven't worked for a few years now, with last season's Europa League triumph covering over deep issues.
Throughout these testing times, though, Archie Gray has stood out among his senior peers, outperforming many, playing with more maturity and conviction. Only 20 years old, he has been thrown into the deep end all right, featuring prominently since joining from boyhood club Leeds United as an 18-year-old in 2024.
Comparable to "a young Declan Rice", according to The Athletic's Duncan Alexander, Gray's versatility and mindset set him apart from his peers. Sharp in possession and combative against the ball, this could really be a future Rice rival in the Three Lions set-up.
A natural midfielder, Gray has been played across any number of positions at Tottenham, a testament to his versatility but also evidence of dysfunctions in north London that would surely have hindered a lesser player.
Instead, Gray has only looked forward, galvanising those around him. In that, there is certainly something Rice-esque about him, with the England superstar instrumental in taking West Ham away from the relegation fodder and into Europe to secure silverware under David Moyes.
The fact of the matter is that Gray hasn't been afforded enough chances to impress in the middle, his natural position, his best position.
With Bentancur back, surely he needs to start over someone like Bissouma? You would think that his technicality could be important when Spurs travel to Wolves next weekend, and it might just spell the end for an experienced player who has been outperformed by one a decade younger than him.