Tottenham Hotspur remain two points adrift of safety despite Joao Palhinha’s late goal earning them victory against Wolves and a first Premier League win of 2026.
Spurs looked in serious trouble after Nottingham Forest’s thumping 5-0 victory over Sunderland on Friday increased their lead over them to eight points. When West Ham took the lead over Everton on Saturday, it served to extend the live gap to Roberto De Zerbi’s side to four points.
Tottenham briefly jumped out of the drop zone in the live table after Palhinha scored on 82 minutes and Everton equalised at the London Stadium on 88 minutes, sending Spurs fans into wild celebrations at Molineux.
But Callum Wilson’s late winner for West Ham lifted them back up to 17th, two points clear of Spurs with four games to play.
Tottenham did avoid equalling their worst winless run in league history, a 16-game record set in 1935, but worrying-looking injuries for Dominic Solanke and Xavi Simons will add to their problems.
Here The Athletic’s Jay Harris breaks down the key moments.
Where does this leave Spurs?
They are in a bad situation but have been given a small glimmer of hope.
Palhinha’s late goal earned them their first win in the Premier League since December. The injuries to Solanke and Xavi will make their escape act difficult, but the psychological impact of finally winning a match should be huge.
Spurs started brightly against Wolves but their intensity dropped off after the first 15 minutes. That was summed up by Randal Kolo Muani who initially caused Hugo Bueno problems and then was anonymous for the rest of the first half. It was no surprise De Zerbi replaced Kolo Muani with Mathys Tel at the break.
One of Spurs’ biggest problems this season has been their inability to create high-quality chances. They should be desperately fighting for their lives but offered very little threat in open play. Rodrigo Bentancur’s header from Pedro Porro’s corner in the second half was their best opportunity until Palhinha scored when it felt like all hope was lost.
The Portuguese’s scrappy effort sparked a wild few minutes in the battle to avoid the drop. Back in London, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s 88th minute equaliser briefly gave Everton hope of drawing with West Ham. If Spurs had lost and West Ham had won, De Zerbi’s side would have been in a perilous position.
It looked like the momentum was about to swing massively in Spurs’ favour and they were, for a blissful few minutes, out of the bottom three on goal difference. Then the Wolves’ fans started taunting the opposition fans and chanting “Tottenham away, ole ole.” A few seconds later the news filtered through that West Ham had retaken the lead.
Still, there were huge celebrations off the bench and in the away section after Antonin Kinsky’s fine late save ensured a big win.
What happened to Simons and Solanke?
Spurs have been struck by a horrible injury curse over the last two seasons. It feels like every time one player returns from the treatment room, somebody else takes his place.
James Maddison suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury in pre-season. Dejan Kulusevski is still recovering from a complicated knee injury which then head coach Ange Postecoglou originally referred to as a “knock” last year. Maddison and Kulusevski have not played a single minute for Spurs this season.
Mohammed Kudus has suffered a setback in his return from a hamstring injury while Destiny Udogie is back on the sidelines only a few weeks after recovering from his own hamstring issue.
Spurs’ injury curse took a new cruel twist on Saturday afternoon. Dominic Solanke was substituted just before half-time after dropping to the floor off the ball a couple of minutes after a tackle on Wolves’ midfielder Andre. He appeared to be rubbing the back of his left leg.
Solanke has endured a difficult time at Spurs since he joined them from Bournemouth in August 2024 for a club-record fee, but remains one of their most influential players. Losing the England international for any period of time damages their chances of avoiding relegation and his own quest to play at this summer’s World Cup.
What happened with Simons in the second half looked more ominous.
The 22-year-old went down holding his right knee after chasing the ball and colliding with Hugo Bueno. He tried to continue and even waved towards the bench in anger when he was replaced by Palhinha. However, Simons had to be stretchered around the pitch towards the dressing room a couple of minutes later.
Simons was nearly Spurs’ matchwinner in last weekend’s draw with Brighton & Hove Albion and he was exceptional in the second leg of their Champions League tie with Atletico Madrid. He has been the only player to provide a creative spark and now it looks like he could miss their final few games of the season.
Losing one of their best attacking players would have left Spurs in a difficult spot. Losing two in the same game will leave them numb.
How important was Palhinha’s goal (and Tel’s help)?
A lot of the credit for Palhinha’s goal should actually go to Mathys Tel. The France Under-21 international chased the ball when it looked like it was going out of play. He prevented Wolves from earning a goal kick and Spurs kept hold of possession until they won a corner.
Porro’s out-swinging delivery led to a great chance for Bentancur a few minutes before Palhinha scored and Wolves did not learn their lesson. The ball was allowed to drop inside the box and Richarlison scuffed a left-footed effort towards goal. The effort was going wide until Palhinha poked the ball into the net at the front post.
It is the second time this season Palhinha has saved Spurs from a damaging result against Wolves. Back in September, the midfielder’s stoppage-time effort earned Spurs a point under then head coach Thomas Frank and prevented them from suffering an embarrassing defeat.
If Simons’ curling strike last week was worthy of winning a game, Palhinha’s goal was at the opposite end of the scale. It was scrappy and scruffy but nobody cared. He jumped over the advertising hoardings to celebrate with the Spurs fans. Roberto De Zerbi jumped up and down on the touchline. Spurs had scraped over the line to end a 15-game winless run.
De Zerbi recognised the significance of the moment by bringing on Radu Dragusin for Conor Gallagher in the final few minutes. Then Kinksy clattered into the post making a fantastic save from Joao Gomes’ free kick with one of the last plays of the game.
This group of players have finally shown their supporters that they are up for the challenge and prepared to fight to stay in the division. There may be injuries, but there is also hope.
What did De Zerbi say?
We will bring you this after the Tottenham head coach has spoken at the post-match press conference.
What next for Spurs?