Tottenham Hotspur are not in crisis mode, but there's a sense that Thomas Frank is a man who needs to create an upswing in results and performances quickly.
Sunday's 3-0 loss at Nottingham Forest was, by the Danish coach's own admission, a "disjointed" performance, doing little to ease the encroaching flames from fans who are getting fed up of the side's lack of positive, fluent play.
The usual culprits this season, the likes of Pedro Porro and Guglielmo Vicario, were at fault once again, and the goalkeeper in particular is beginning to look like a man on borrowed time.
Vicario is playing himself out of a job
When Tottenham signed Italian goalkeeper Vicario from Empoli for £17m in 2023, it was felt that Ange Postecoglou had landed a shrewd deal at the start of his reign.
But Vicario has ebbed and flowed, alright, and he's been culpable for more than a few frustrating moments this season.
The 29-year-old has been error-prone and unconvincing, albeit having lifted his Premier League save percentage from 64% last season to 70.4% this term, as per FBref.
But having made eight errors since his debut in England's top flight, Vicario is not the long-term solution for a team crying out for stability. Football Insider understand the Lilywhites are getting ready to sign a replacement at the end of the campaign.
However, Vicario is surmounted by a leaky backline, lacking synergy and strength against the tide of the division's attacking lines.
There are one or two larger problems under Frank's management, one of whom simply isn't cut out to lead the line consistently and over the next few years.
Spurs' bigger problem than Vicario
If ever there was a player prone to blowing hot and cold, Richarlison would be that player. The Brazilian forward has scored a few goals recently, but his overall play leaves much to be desired, and his display against Forest brought any positivity crashing back to earth.
This season, the Brazil forward has scored seven goals and supplied two assists across 25 matches in all competitions.
He has enjoyed some standout moments, scoring a brilliant strike against Arsenal and a highly-charged late goal against Manchester United, but even these peaks were clouded over by circumstance: Spurs were thrashed by their rivals, and the Red Devils levelled out Richarlison's goal with a last-gasp equaliser.
Frank needs a more refined and commanding centre-forward. With Dominic Solanke's injury record torrid down N17, recruitment might be the route to go down, especially since Richarlison, 28, is into the penultimate year of his £90k-per-week contract.
Criticised for an "inexcusable" miss in the Champions League last week by writer Simon Yemane, Richarlison needed to put in a big performance at the City Ground, but he
To say he toiled would make a deceitful comment on his work-rate and focus against Sean Dyche's well-drilled side. Football.london criticised his hold-up play and movement, branding him with a 3/10 match rating and writing that it was 'like playing with a wall up front'.
There simply isn't enough on show, and there hasn't been from the first time he donned a Lilywhite shirt.
The difference between Richarlison and his former teammate Harry Kane is stark. No one ever expected him to emulate the club's greatest-ever striker when he completed his £60m move from Everton, but the clue is in that sentence: Richarlison cost £60m, more than a sizeable outlay, and he hasn't been good or consistent enough. In the words of Gabriel Agbonlahor, he is "one of the worst signings in Premier League history."
Tottenham need to sort it out. Poor strategising over the past several years has guided the club down a slope, and while a Europa League title has been claimed along the way, it is clear that the silverware will gather cobwebs without upgrades on such players being enforced in 2026.