It’s no secret Spurs are in trouble. We are 18th in the Premier League table after 33 games (7 wins, 10 draws, 16 losses; 31 points, goal difference -11). They’re in the bottom three/relegation zone for much of the run-in, having gone winless in the league throughout 2026 (a long streak of draws and losses, with very few points picked up recently). This is their deepest late-season drop in decades—the first time in the relegation mix this far into a season since the 1970s.
Tensions are mounting not just about the football; it’s an existential crisis, based on a lack of faith in an ownership that has leveraged money very cleverly but has continuously failed to achieve much of note in respect of the football.
This aligns with broader criticism of Tottenham’s post-Pochettino era: multiple managers with contrasting styles (e.g., Mourinho, Conte, Nuno, Stellini, Mason, Postecoglou, now De Zerbi), plus changes in the backroom and recruitment.
AVB experienced some of this instability firsthand during his own turbulent spell at the club. It’s a stark reminder for big clubs that constant upheaval rarely builds sustained success. Spurs still have games left and could escape, but the situation is tense.
“It’s a real shock. In eight years, you have totally different methods, totally different ways of thinking, totally different ways of implementing philosophies and probably this has led to the instability right now, which adds to the pressure of being in the relegation zone. That pressure is second to none.”
“Eight managers in five years doesn’t help because all of them are very, very different to one another. Different methods, different ways of selecting players. So this leads to instability as well. They’ve changed managers, the leading structures, and also sports directors.”
He contrasted it with Porto: They addressed early instability by sticking with their manager for continuity in scouting, youth promotion, and structure, rather than panicking over short-term results.
Tottenham needs to be a football club again, and one senses that the attention should be less on ‘multi-events’ and more on the actual football.
Vinai and Lange out, Villas-Boas in.