The New York Times

Tottenham Hotspur have signed goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky from Slavia Prague in a €16million (£13.3m; $16.5m) deal.

Our writers — experts in transfers, tactics, data and football finance — have come together to rate January’s senior Premier League transfers. This is a continuation of the project we launched last summer, but we have also made some significant tweaks to how we assess each deal.

Gone are the five scores out of 100, and in their place are 10 ratings of 50. This should allow for much more nuance to be reflected in the analysis and, importantly, much more variability in the overall figure each transfer ends up with. Follow the link below for more background on the changes.

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The Athletic 500: What we learned and why we've changed our transfer scoring system

Tactical fit — 42/50

Ange Postecoglou has an unwavering desire to play out from the back, and Antonin Kinsky will help facilitate that in Guglielmo Vicario’s absence.

Kinsky is part of the new breed of goalkeepers who instinctively look to play short passes from goal kicks and can receive the ball and make intelligent decisions under pressure to beat the opposition press.

As the graphic below demonstrates, Kinsky’s most frequently played pass for Slavia Prague in the Europa League this season — albeit a small sample size — was a square ball to the left-sided central defender. It also indicates Kinsky likes to play more direct clipped passes over the opposition’s attacking line and into the second third of the pitch, but he rarely plays long balls.

And he’s not just willing to play under pressure, he’s pretty good at it too. Across six matches in Europe this season, Kinsky averaged an 84.1 per cent success rate, including 90 per cent in a 2-0 win over Ludogorets of Bulgaria and 92 per cent in a 1-0 away defeat to Spain’s Athletic Club. What’s most impressive is that Kinsky has only misplaced one short or medium-length pass out of 140.

Injury record — 45/50

A major mark of approval for Kinsky is his perfect injury record.

Since making his professional debut for Dukla Prague in the Czech Republic’s second division in 2020, he has consistently been fit and available for selection and has been an ever-present for Slavia Prague in the league.

Market value — 38/50

For a club of Tottenham’s size and spending power, a €16million deal for a 21-year-old with significant potential represents low-risk business.

With Vicario unlikely to be back in action until late February or early March, Spurs are effectively signing a first-choice goalkeeper for the short term. After the Italy international returns, Kinsky will likely drop to the bench unless he impresses enough to keep his place ahead of his more senior team-mate, but there are long-term benefits too.

If he makes good on his highly-touted potential, the initial outlay will be looked back on as a bargain.

Contract rationale – 40/50

Kinsky has signed a contract until 2031, allowing him the time to flourish from a top prospect to a potential No 1.

The long-term nature of the deal represents a significant commitment to the Czech Under-21 international, indicating they believe in his chances to become a starter or a high-value asset they can move on in the future. Injury and stunted development make any long-term deal a risk, but it’s a calculated one given his age, potential and impressive injury record.

Recent form – 37/50

Slavia Prague sit at the top of the Czech first division with 50 points from 19 matches, and Kinsky is a big reason why.

Across those 19 games, Kinsky has conceded just seven goals and kept 12 clean sheets. His impressive record is largely due to an excellent defence by Czech standards, as well as an 80 per cent save percentage. For context, no Premier League goalkeeper has higher than 78.7 per cent this season.

His form in the Europa League has not been as strong, conceding seven goals from six matches with a save percentage of 62.5 per cent. However, two excellent saves against Eintracht Frankfurt forwards Omar Marmoush and Hugo Etikite in front of Spurs scouts in a 1-0 defeat will provide confidence that he can produce against more elite competition.

Gap-filling – 45/50

There’s been a gap in quality between the sticks at Spurs since Vicario’s injury, and Kinsky provides a much-needed potential relief to that problem.

Given Kinsky is at the beginning of his career and has yet to face Premier League-level competition consistently, there’s no guarantee he will be an immediate solution. Still, he is a significant improvement on Fraser Forster (who is out of contract at the end of the season) and Brandon Austin (who made his first-team debut for Spurs on Sunday) — particularly in terms of distribution — and provides competition for Vicario with the attributes that Postecoglou demands from his goalkeeper.

Excitement factor – 30/50

Kinsky does not address all of Spurs’ current issues, but there should be excitement within the fanbase that he potentially provides a solution to one of their most glaring.

A backup goalkeeper who had likely not been on the radar of most of the Spurs faithful before the signing was announced will never inspire the kind of reaction that Dominic Solanke did in the summer, but he’s a player who is extremely highly rated in his home country and could help to elevate Postecoglou’s side in the short and long term.

Future-proofing – 37/50

While the transfer fee is not small for a player with such little top-level experience, the opportunity to sign a highly-rated prospect from a club in European competition does not often come cheap.

Still, if Kinsky flourishes into a Premier League and international-level goalkeeper, there is more than enough room for Spurs to make a significant profit should he ever leave.

Rival impact – 25/50

While it’s unlikely executives at Premier League clubs are losing sleep over this deal, it represents a young goalkeeper with the skills to succeed at the top level being taken off the market.

A look across north London, where on-loan Bournemouth goalkeeper Neto is warming the bench for David Raya, provides one example of several unresolved backup goalkeeper situations in the Premier League. What’s even better, however, is that many believe Kinsky will do more than deputise for Vicario; he will potentially offer serious long-term competition for his shirt.

Marketability – 10/50

Despite his exciting potential, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium megastore is unlikely to sell many Kinsky shirts this week. Still, it might be fun to keep an eye out for Czech supporters flying over from Prague to watch the potential heir to Petr Cech’s goalkeeping throne in the coming matches.

Overall rating — 349/500

(Top photo: Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)

Tottenham Hotspur are close to signing Czech goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky to a long-term deal.

The 21-year-old plays for Czech First League leaders Slavia Prague, where he has kept 12 clean sheets in their 19 league matches.

Sources close to Tottenham have indicated that the Premier League side will pay a fee of more than £10million ($12.4m) including bonuses and add-ons for Kinsky.

The move is expected to be completed later today (Saturday) with Kinsky signing a contract with Spurs until 2030. Kinsky is expected to challenge for the No 1 spot while at Tottenham and is not viewed as a backup.

Spurs lost first-choice goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario to a right ankle injury in November, with Fraser Forster deputising in the Italian’s absence in their last 10 games.

Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou confirmed at a news conference on Friday that Vicario was not expected to return to action until the end of February.

Having previously ruled out signing a free agent goalkeeper to challenge Forster in Vicario’s absence, Postecoglou was also again asked about possible additions in the winter transfer window.

“That is the tricky bit around January. Whether that is Spurs or anyone else, if anyone is looking to supplement in January, usually it is because of some sort of need,” Postecoglou said. “Most clubs don’t plan for January reinforcements and that’s why January is always tricky. Not just for us but all clubs.

“You can still hopefully find some common ground where you can get the right kind of player to come in and help the playing group at the moment because they do need that support.

“The club is working as hard as it possibly can, trust me. They are not having New Year parties, they are out there working trying to improve our situation and they’ll continue to do so.”

Kinsky is a Czech youth international but has been called up to their recent senior squads, remaining on the bench for his country’s Nations League fixtures in October and November.

Slavia Prague have been approached for comment.

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Why Levy, not Postecoglou, is feeling the snap of Spurs' winter of discontent

(Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)

When Tottenham Hotspur appointed Ange Postecoglou as their head coach 18 months ago, the dream was that he would bring back the sense of unity and togetherness the club had misplaced. That a fanbase which had been turned off by negative football on the pitch and negative energy from the dugout would be powerfully re-energised.

And there were certainly moments last season — and a few in this one — when it felt like that dream had come true.

On a good day, those where Postecoglou’s Spurs were at their intense, expansive best, the crowd and the players would feed off each other’s energy. Everything felt aligned again.

But now, halfway through the Australian’s second season, all that talk of unity and alignment sounds like wishful thinking from another age. Not just because Spurs are down in 11th place in the Premier League table, currently on course for their worst league season for a generation (14th in 2003-04). But because so much of the optimism, hope and positivity has drained out of the fanbase over the last few months.

Speak to any Tottenham supporter about the state of their club right now and the one word that keeps coming up is “apathy”.

The fans are tuning out. Saturday’s home league game against Newcastle United could be one of the flattest atmospheres of the season. Many have tried to sell their tickets for the match on the club’s official Ticket Exchange. On Thursday, 48 hours before kick-off, there were still broad swathes of purple on the club website’s stadium map, indicating available seats.

Most of those will probably be taken up between now and the match starting tomorrow lunchtime. And it is worth remembering that Tottenham have another home game on Wednesday night — a Carabao Cup semi-final first leg against Liverpool. In the context of Spurs’ season, the Liverpool match is far bigger than the Newcastle one. And Tottenham fans who can only afford to attend one of the two games so soon after Christmas may understandably choose to forego Saturday’s Premier League offering.

Then there is the fact that Newcastle’s visit is a Category A fixture — a status it acquired at the start of last season when the men from St James’ Park were a Champions League side. This means that match tickets for Spurs vs Newcastle cost between £71 and £109. If you successfully sell your ticket on the exchange, you can in theory afford to take a whole family to the Liverpool cup tie, where adult tickets are £37 and juniors’ just £10.

Many Tottenham supporters talk about the atmosphere in the club’s new stadium, which opened in the spring of 2019, not being as good as they had hoped. Some fan groups have tried to work with the club to improve this. Spurs have been keen on this too, setting up the matchday atmosphere working group at the start of last season, trying to implement the fans’ ideas where possible, such as a singing section for the recent Europa League match against Roma.

But recently, some of that work has fallen apart.

Last month, Matty (he chose not to give his surname), the head of THFC Flags, which organises the tifo presentations at the ground, stepped aside from the role after years of tiring negotiations with Tottenham about planned displays. Two days after that, @SpursSongSheet wrote on X that it would stop working with the club, saying the two were “misaligned”. And a further two days later Return of the Shelf, a 1,600-strong group, said it had “unanimously voted to step away” from its relationship with Spurs.

But this is not just about especially-motivated fans’ groups. There is something bigger going on here, broader than specific issues with choreography, ticket prices and scheduling, as real as they are. And that is the sense that supporters are not just selling their match tickets, but are emotionally disengaging from this particular campaign.

Some reported feeling more apathetic rather than angry at Spurs’ past two home games: a 6-3 defeat by Liverpool just before Christmas that should have been even more lop-sided and Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers where Spurs conceded an 87th-minute equaliser.

Under normal circumstances, you might expect fans to be furious about results like those, specifically with the players and the manager, but that is not the mood right now. Even though results over recent months, or even the past year (Tottenham have 37 points from their last 30 league games going back to March) are worse than those that got previous managers Jose Mourinho, Nuno Espirito Santo or Antonio Conte the sack.

Spurs followers are not as unanimously pro-Postecoglou as they were last season — how could they be? — but there is still a broad range of opinion among the fanbase. And there are plenty out there who take the view that the struggles of the team this season are the fault not of the coach but of the board and of the recruitment (sending Postecoglou into the 2024-25 season with only three specialist centre-backs, without senior reinforcements in midfield and without enough reliable goalscorers are the main criticisms). The fact that Postecoglou has to defend club strategy in public twice a week, rather than any of Spurs’ leading executives, also makes people more sympathetic to his cause.

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Tottenham Hotspur Transfer DealSheet: What to expect from the January window

Perhaps this is the biggest single shift in the fanbase this season.

Opposition to chairman Daniel Levy has always been a fringe view, but one that would at times go mainstream. Like at the end of the 2020-21 season, when Spurs tried to join the mooted European Super League. Or again at the end of the 2022-23 season, when Spurs sacked Conte, and then, four games later, his assistant turned replacement Cristian Stellini.

But the discord of spring 2023 was effectively solved by that summer’s appointment of Postecoglou. Or so it felt at the time.

The hope inside the club was that the fans’ anger was specifically about the defensive style of play under Mourinho and then Conte. Change that, give them some “free-flowing, attacking and entertaining” football, and then Spursworld would be a happy place again. And maybe that felt true last season, as fans fell in love with what they were watching, and fierce opposition to the board became a fringe view again.

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The player at each Premier League club who needs a move this transfer window

This feels different.

Nobody would doubt that Spurs’ football is “free-flowing, attacking and entertaining”; in fact, it is often now excessively so. But that alone has not pacified the fans, and it has not spared Levy from their criticism. In fact, the striking thing about right now is that the failures of the team are being pinned as much on Levy by the fans as on Postecoglou himself. That was never the case with Mourinho or Conte. And maybe that dynamic will grant Postecoglou more time to turn things around.

It is perhaps telling that his name has still been sung at matches in recent weeks, including in the second half of that Liverpool defeat.

But the most widely-heard chant on the terraces has been about this season’s star man, and the chairman: “I don’t care about Levy. He don’t care about me. All I care about… is (Dejan) Kulusevski.”

At least as far as matters on the pitch are concerned, this brief winter of discontent may soon pass and be replaced by sunnier times. If Cristian Romero, fellow centre-back Micky van de Ven and goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario can all get fit after injuries then suddenly Tottenham, and even Postecoglou, look like a different proposition.

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Tottenham Hotspur's 2024: Dejan Kulusevski comes to the fore but inconsistency lingers

Whenever Spurs have been in choppy waters in the recent past, they have tended to find a way out. And maybe all of these questions about ‘atmosphere’ are fundamentally downstream from the simple fact of whether the team are winning matches or not.

But there is another possibility too, which is that they do not snap out of this, and do not turn results around. And that this bad form becomes a bad year. And what now just feels like a cold snap could be a long winter indeed.

(Top photo: Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

Tottenham Hotspur entered 2024 on an impressive run of four wins from five games. They were back on track, after injuries to Micky van de Ven and James Maddison ground their momentum to a halt in November 2023… or so it seemed.

Spurs struggled to match their blistering start to the 2023-24 season and became frustratingly inconsistent. They narrowly missed out on qualifying for the Champions League but the signs suggested they were heading in the right direction under Ange Postecoglou.

Tottenham signed Dominic Solanke for a club-record fee of £65million in the summer to upgrade a key position on the pitch and he has been an instant success along with 18-year-old Archie Gray who has impressed in the unfamiliar role of centre-back. However, a relentless injury crisis means it now feels like they did not strengthen enough in the transfer window.

As we approach the midway point of the campaign, Postecoglou’s side continue to impress and bewilder their fanbase in equal measure. For every emphatic victory over Manchester City or Aston Villa, there have been dismal defeats to Crystal Palace or Ipswich Town.

They end the year still in three cup competitions, but having just lost at Nottingham Forest, then drawn at home to Wolves.

Here is The Athletic’s breakdown of 2024 and a look ahead at what is to come over the next 12 months.

Best moment

Last month’s stunning 4-0 win against Manchester City at the Etihad will live long in the memory. Pep Guardiola’s side are in turmoil but that should not take anything away from such an impressive performance.

James Maddison was sensational throughout, Guglielmo Vicario played the entire second half with a broken bone in his right foot while Erling Haaland could not find a way past the makeshift centre-back partnership of Radu Dragusin and Ben Davies. Spurs calmly moved the ball around at the back and lured Man City’s players forward before they punched holes in the midfield with crisp passes. When Brennan Johnson scored in stoppage time, Postecoglou raised his first triumphantly in the air. For the second time in a few weeks, he masterminded victory over the champions.

Worst moment

When Tottenham beat Aston Villa 4-0 in March, it felt like they were in complete control of the race for fourth place and the final Champions League spot. Villa had been humbled in front of their own fans and looked beaten even before John McGinn’s red card in the second half.

What nobody expected was for Spurs to then suffer a 3-0 defeat at Fulham less than a week later. That game represented the start of a collapse which saw them lose six of their final 11 games. They stumbled over the finishing line and ended up two points behind Aston Villa. Instead of coming up against Bayern Munich and Juventus in the Champions League they would have to be content with trips to Ferencvaros and Rangers in the Europa League.

There have been some particularly painful results in the last couple of months, but that week — from Villa Park on Sunday to Craven Cottage the next Saturday — was perhaps the first glimpse of the wild inconsistency that has dogged Spurs this season.

Best game

We have already mentioned the 4-0 victory over Manchester City so let’s go for something different. October’s win at Manchester United was Postecoglou’s first away to one of the big six, but for pure entertainment and drama it’s tough to look beyond the 4-3 League Cup quarter-final victory over the same opponents.

Spurs looked to have swept aside United again, racing into a 3-0 lead even quicker than they had at Old Trafford, but this time there was a sting in the tail. Or maybe a couple.

With stand-in keeper Fraser Forster struggling to play out from the back, United were gifted two comical goals and things suddenly got extremely tense.

Even Son scoring directly from a corner in the 88th minute wasn’t the end of the drama, with Jonny Evans nodding in to inject yet more chaos into the final minutes of added time. But Spurs held on to set up the first big game of 2025 against Liverpool in the first leg of a League Cup semi-final.

Best player

Kulusevski rotated between a few different positions last season. The 24-year-old would function as an emergency striker, a right winger or an attacking central midfielder depending on what Postecoglou required. He would even perform multiple roles during the same game.

He needed to find somewhere to settle and since the second week of the season he has been phenomenal as a No 8. Kulusevski’s ability to glide past opponents creates space for his team-mates to exploit. It is incredibly difficult to steal the ball from the Sweden international and his running capacity is ridiculous. Nine direct goal contributions in 19 games underlines that he is Tottenham’s best and most influential player right now. If you still don’t believe us, this piece should prove it.

The stat that sums up 2024

Spurs finished the calendar year in the bottom half of the table for the first time since 2008-09. Back then Juande Ramos had been sacked by mid-October after they failed to win any of his last eight league games in charge.

Favourite quote

“Are you not entertained?” Postecoglou asked Sky Sports’ Patrick Davison after that thrilling League Cup win over Manchester United.

Yes, Ange, we were. And not for the first time.

Did that really happen?

Tottenham were heading towards an embarrassing exit in the third round of the Carabao Cup for the second year in a row. Coventry City were leading 1-0 in the 88th minute and Spurs looked bereft of ideas. Postecoglou threw on Maddison, Son and Kulusevski in search of an equaliser but Coventry remained on top. Then Kulusevski poked the ball into the box and Djed Spence came out of nowhere to prod it past Ben Wilson. A couple of minutes later, Brennan Johnson scored on the counter to seal a dramatic comeback.

After underwhelming loan spells with Leeds United and Genoa last season, it felt like Spence was destined to leave in the summer, yet he became an unlikely hero that night in August. He may have had to wait until December to make his first start, but recent signs suggest the Djed Spence redemption arc will continue into 2025, despite that unfortunate red card at the City Ground.

Player to watch in 2025

After becoming the youngest player to represent Spurs in the Premier League when he came off the bench against Manchester City in May at the age of 16 years and 277 days, Mikey Moore has received even more first-team exposure this season. He has started a couple of times in the Europa League and made his full top-flight debut in the 1-0 defeat to Crystal Palace in October. A nasty virus has temporarily halted the 17-year-old’s progress but expect him to shine on his return.

A wish for 2025

It would be nice to head into an international break following a win instead of a defeat and for Solanke to score goals at the rate his performances merit. The real answer though is for Micky van de Ven to avoid any more pesky hamstring injuries which have such a significant impact on how the team performs.

(Top photo: Michael Regan/Getty Images)

In the era of managerial principles, you would be hard pressed to find someone whose philosophies have been scrutinised harder than Ange Postecoglou.

Should he sacrifice his belief system to prioritise results over performances? Should he tone down the all-encompassing, uber-proactive attacking approach and do a bit of defending with a deeper defensive line? He loves being asked about all this stuff, too.

Let’s be honest, it’s not even a debate as to whether he will tone down or double down. If that wasn’t already abundantly clear, then when he suggested after the catastrophic 3-2 defeat at Brighton that he didn’t want to be “falsely rewarded” by making substitutions to try to see out the game, well, there’s your answer.

The principles won’t change but how about the players? Can they adapt to what Postecoglou wants? And if not, why don’t Spurs just buy better ones?

Tottenham’s latest defeat to Nottingham Forest, which left them in the bottom half of the table and a remarkable 11 points behind Nuno Espirito Santo’s third-placed team, showcased contrasting styles between the two teams and two managers, both of which could have been forecast before kick-off.

Forest were incredibly physical, almost to the point of intimidation. They defended deep and in big numbers, they pounced gleefully on loose balls, countered at pace, and were generally vile to play against. These were traits Nuno also perfected in his time at Wolves (and never had time to at Spurs).

Spurs were the complete opposite defensively, leaving gaps for Forest to exploit. At the other end, they attempted to pick locks, having to forge and twist and scythe to create any opening through the red wall with combinations and brisk movement, via 70 per cent possession. With Dejan Kulusevski doubled-up on, it rarely worked. Son Heung-min and Brennan Johnson just didn’t have it in them.

This all made the first goal so important… and in turn made the manner in which their soft centre melted to allow Morgan Gibbs-White space and time to venture forward and pick the pass that teed up Anthony Elanga’s winning goal all the more unforgivable. Kulusevski could only dream of such luxuries.

Forest are a team and a club having the time of their lives right now, with a buoyancy you can touch and feel (like the one Postecoglou generated at Spurs 15 months ago). It was no disgrace to lose here, especially given Spurs’ current absentee list, but watching them attempt to pry their way though Forest’s midfield, let alone their defence, you couldn’t help but ask: ‘Is this the best Spurs have got?’

This wasn’t a defeat centred on principles or even tactics. After falling behind, Spurs had 60 minutes to try to score a goal in an attack-vs-defence training drill and they didn’t really generate a great chance, let alone equalise. Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels was not unduly stretched in the second half.

With so many attacking players on the pitch, was that down to the instructions Postecoglou had given them or were the players just not up to it?

Son and Johnson were unable to create much of note, Kulusevski was crowded out and full-backs Destiny Udogie and Djed Spence weren’t too impactful in the final third. The bench couldn’t lift them either, with James Maddison and Lucas Bergvall not making much of a difference to a one-paced midfield, and Timo Werner thrown on in the closing minutes because he was the only attacker to choose from.

Spurs may at some point decide their manager isn’t for them and that they need to go through another cycle of purgatory, but if, as a club, they are short of players good enough to take them to the top end of the table — and short of the squad depth required to cope with the style and amount of football they are playing — then the cycle will only repeat itself.

Pragmatism, idealism, defence-first, attack-first; whatever the approach, the results haven’t consistently improved for some time now. And the only consistency in that time comes from above.

“I think the most important department in the club is the scouting department,” Pep Guardiola said in 2019. “Much more than managers and players. When they choose well, 80 per cent of the job is done.

“When we don’t choose well or they don’t choose the players we need for the way we want to play or the quality they have, you spend a lot of time and energy and sometimes you don’t have enough time, with the number of fixtures, to improve.”

Spending time and energy trying to improve and sometimes you don’t have enough time? Sounds pretty familiar.

Tottenham are paying for mistakes they made in the summer: mistakes like signing just one senior player in Dominic Solanke and spending more than half the budget on three youngsters.

Archie Gray may have showed yet again here why Spurs were so keen to spend big on him as one for the future with an accomplished display out of position at centre-back, but there is no doubt that Spurs needed a back-up goalkeeper, some back-up senior defenders, and another ready-made forward player or two with end product. None of those happened, despite the horrendous injury problems they suffered last season and despite having more fixtures to contend with this season.

“We’re asking a lot of this group of players,” Postecoglou said. “A lot of these guys are playing every three days. It’s only logical they are not going to be at their sharpest but they are trying and that’s all I can ask if them.”

They are trying. And they are playing for Postecoglou but the squad isn’t big enough, and the problems they are having were foreseeable.

With Spence now missing Tottenham’s game against Wolves on Sunday after being booked twice against Forest and Radu Dragusin potentially facing time out having suffered an ankle injury, their problems will be compounded even further.

Spurs have won two league games from eight since early November: both against two of the league’s out-of-form teams in Manchester City and Southampton. They are miles off the top four and hope is dwindling of having a decent season.

In the circle of blame, there is a sizeable portion that can be attributed to Postecoglou but recruitment, at the root of any team’s success, deserves the biggest scrutiny of all.

GO DEEPER

The Briefing: Nottingham Forest 1-0 Tottenham - Nuno has the last laugh, Spence sent off

(Top photo: MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

To put it bluntly, Spurs got ‘Nunoed’ at the City Ground.

Tottenham’s former manager Nuno Espirito Santo has set up his Nottingham Forest side to be regimented, sit deep, set traps and pounce on the slightest of weak, misplaced or under-hit passes. Then they break with pace and purpose.

And that’s just what happened when Anthony Elanga struck in the first half.

Despite enjoying 70.4 per cent of possession, Spurs were consigned to their ninth Premier League defeat of the season in the mist by the River Trent, and saw Djed Spence sent off for a second yellow-card offence in stoppage time.

Tim Spiers discusses the key talking points…

Beware going behind against Forest…

Ange Postecoglou reiterated in his pre-match interview that Spurs had to be wary of how strong, organised and physical Forest are.

Nuno’s team — as was the case when he was in charge at Wolverhampton Wanderers — are one of the hardest and most horrible to play against in the Premier League.

That makes them difficult opponents when the scores are level, but the last thing you want to do is concede the first goal of the game to them. And yet, there it was after 28 minutes.

Spurs lost possession when a dawdling Spence was crowded out. Morgan Gibbs-White was afforded the time and space Spurs’ attackers could only fantasise about when he ventured forward and picked his pass for Elanga to get half a yard on Destiny Udogie and slot home for 1-0.

Why did Spurs fail to score?

Spurs’ defence has been more wide open than the Grand Canyon lately but scoring goals hadn’t been an issue… until today.

They had scored 15 in their previous four domestic outings but found themselves up against, yes, a stubborn and incredibly committed Forest defence, but also lacked the nous to break them down.

The tone was set when Son Heung-min wasted what turned out to be one of their best chances of the match, shooting too close to Matz Sels during a rare Spurs counter-attack.

Otherwise, they spent most of the match trying to thread a needle, enjoying endless possession with little end result. Forest doubled up on Dejan Kulusevski, leaving Spurs’ main route to goal being from the flanks, via combinations and lock-picking against a wall of red shirts. But other than an outstanding Sels save from Brennan Johnson’s top-corner-bound effort from the right, the Forest goalkeeper wasn’t unduly stretched.

It wasn’t a poor Spurs performance but they lacked the ingenuity or that one special moment to break the deadlock against one of the league’s best defences.

Postecoglou tried to change things from the bench, but Lucas Bergvall and James Maddison didn’t lift Spurs’ one-paced midfield, while Timo Werner was reluctantly sent on for the closing stages and didn’t have much time to contribute.

It reiterated the need for January reinforcements.

No joy for the Forest old boys…

Spence and Johnson were hoping to repeat their Forest vintage of 2021-22 when they lined up together against their old club on Spurs’ right flank.

The pair received a warm welcome from the home fans before kick-off and were watched on by Spence’s parents and Johnson’s father David, himself a former Forest player.

Spence, finally enjoying regular game time at Spurs after two and a half years on the fringes, looked nervous early on when he played a short pass to Rodrigo Bentancur, but soon got into his stride gallivanting down the right and overlapping Johnson, who was targeted for some rough and ready treatment via robust challenges (he gave some back, too).

Johnson (below) also came closest to scoring for Spurs via his excellent first-half effort but otherwise, this wasn’t quite the performance Spurs fans have been hoping for from the 23-year-old winger. His end product has improved this season but his decision-making and intricacy in general play are still below the level required.

Spence had been fine, shutting down Forest’s attack on their left, but his afternoon ended miserably when he was shown a very late second yellow card for fouling Jota Silva to prevent a Forest counter.

He was applauded off by the home fans, although they also sang, “You used to play for a big club,” in his direction. With Spurs now 11 points behind third-placed Forest, Spence had no comeback.

What did Ange Postecoglou say?

“It’s obviously disappointing the defeat, a tight game,” Postecoglou told Amazon Prime. “It was a disappointing goal to concede, but the boys worked hard and we tried to generate as many opportunities as we could considering the context of the game and how Forest play. We just couldn’t get over the top of them.

“We’ve asked a lot of this group of players, they’re playing every three days so it’s logical they’re not going to be at their sharpest. We just needed a goal to break them open.”

Spurs’ injury problems at centre-back could be continuing, too, with Dragusin being substituted in the 87th minute. “Radu hurt his ankle and said he couldn’t continue,” Postecoglou added. “We’ll have to wait and see with him.”

What next for Tottenham?

Sunday, December 29: Wolverhampton Wanderers (home), Premier League, 3pm UK, 10am ET.

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(Top photo: Ben Stansall/AFP/Getty Images))

Pressure has been building around Ange Postecoglou, with inconsistent results being a key frustration among the Tottenham Hotspur fanbase.

Spurs’ manager needed his players to show they have the character to build some momentum, with a Europa League trip to Rangers’ fiery Ibrox stadium being as good of an examination of any player’s quality and commitment.

While the result was disappointing, Thursday evening’s hard-fought 1-1 draw was not catastrophic to their hopes of progressing. However, in Postecoglou’s eyes, one player comprehensively flunked that test of responsibility.

Timo Werner was hauled off at half-time, with his manager particularly scathing about the 28-year-old’s performance.

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Postecoglou labels Werner performance 'not acceptable' in draw with Rangers

“He wasn’t playing anywhere near the level he should,” Postecoglou said after the game. “When you’ve got 18-year-olds, it’s not acceptable.

“I said that to Timo. He’s a senior international. In the moment we’re in right now, it’s not like we’ve got many options. I need everyone to at least be going out there trying to give the best of themselves. His performance in the first half wasn’t acceptable.”

Perhaps there were actions Postecoglou was witnessing in Werner’s performance that were not captured in the television coverage — be it his body language, his communication, or his out-of-possession positioning.

Whatever the reason, a lack of consistent game time is likely to be a symptom and a cause of Werner’s lack of cutting edge, with just 15 league starts since the start of last season — completing a total of two games in that period.

So, what exactly was Postecoglou referring to when chastising Werner’s performance in Glasgow? Crucially, was it a fair assessment from Spurs’ manager?

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The Briefing - Rangers 1 Spurs 1: Werner and Johnson displays, Kulusevski and Solanke reliance

It was not as if Werner was shying away from the action in the first half, with 39 touches being the fourth-most of any Spurs player in the opening 45 minutes.

As The Athletic’s player dashboard shows below, the Germany forward made more progressive carries than anyone on the pitch across the whole game. The issue was, of his 29 passes attempted, just 18 of them were complete — the lowest pass completion of any Spurs player in the first half.

Pacy forwards are not known — or relied upon — for their ball retention. Still, in an aggressive, daunting atmosphere, there were early opportunities to set the tone with good decision-making. Unfortunately for Werner, those opportunities were not taken.

Within seconds of kick-off, Werner found himself in space to receive the ball on the left flank after a simple switch of play. Driving towards Rangers’ captain James Tavernier, there was a chance to lift his head and play a cross towards the penalty spot (black arrow, slide 2). Instead, Werner kept his head down before a loose touch saw Tavernier win the first duel of the game.

That was the theme of the first half, with Werner struggling to push past Tavernier in possession as he repeatedly ran into an attacking cul-de-sac.

There was a similar example after nine minutes. Werner’s head is down — unable to assess his options — with Rangers’ right-back duly stepping in to stifle the attack.

The mitigating factors here are that Tavernier is a strong one-v-one defender and Spurs did not have sufficient support on the left flank during this attack, yet Werner did find himself running into dead ends.

Going the other way, Tavernier had some joy, running beyond Werner on multiple occasions. A weak tackle against right-winger Vaclav Cerny didn’t help either, with Werner lacking the aggression to stifle an opposition attack.

When attacking support did arrive for Werner, he played some positive passes to James Maddison and Rodrigo Bentancur, who made underlapping runs. His best action also came after getting the better of Tavernier in the penalty area, before driving a low cross to the onrushing Brennan Johnson, whose shot was saved excellently by Jack Butland.

Postecoglou’s biggest frustration must have been Werner’s decision-making as Spurs were building attacks. Forwards are expected to lose possession when looking to create, but there were too many occasions when Werner lost the ball under little pressure.

There were growing frustrations from his team-mates, with the example below showing Yves Bissouma drifting over to the left flank with the ball in an attempt to release Werner. Rangers’ Cerny did a good job of blocking the passing lane, but Werner made little attempt to shuffle along to offer an option for the pass.

The result? A backward pass from Bissouma and a berating comment to Werner for his troubles (slide 4).

Another notable frustration came at the end of the first half when Bentancur found himself in a position to cross from the right. Postecoglou places a lot of focus on back-post chances from his wingers, and being in a position to get on the end of crosses is crucial.

When Bentancur plays the cross, Werner is not even in the frame, never mind the penalty area. As the ball bounces up for Tavernier to clear for a corner, Werner is well behind the play with no chance of receiving from the cross.

The final straw might have come from the most salient example of the evening.

With an opportunity to counter-attack after Fraser Forester claimed the ball, a driven pass from Spurs’ goalkeeper found the path of Werner scurrying over the halfway line. Instead of keeping the move alive, Werner saw the ball run out of play after a first touch that would not have been out of place on a Sunday league pitch at Hackney Marshes.

Such frustration is probably also compounded by Werner’s past displays of talent.

He was highly coveted by Europe’s elite clubs after 28 Bundesliga goals for RB Leipzig in the 2019-20 season. Following a move to Chelsea, a return to Leipzig, and a subsequent loan to Spurs, he has come nowhere near to replicating that blistering form.

He has not been given a consistent run in the team during much of that period but the increasing evidence suggests his 2019-20 season was more of an exception than the rule when assessing his overall career output.

So, was Postecoglou harsh to single Werner out? A little, especially during a half where mistakes were littered across the team as Spurs failed to exert any consistent dominance.

However, the cold fact is that Werner does not have enough credit in the bank in a Spurs shirt to warrant a justifiable defence for his ongoing struggles.

The most worrying thing is arguably that the comments were not a huge surprise.

(Top photo: Robbie Jay Barratt — AMA/Getty Images)

In the end, this could be a valuable point for Spurs, as they fought back from 1-0 down thanks to Dejan Kulusevski’s equaliser. It keeps them steady in the Europa League league phase, only outside the top eight on goal difference. By the time they play again, six weeks from now at Hoffenheim, they should have key players back.

But no one could call this a convincing performance. Spurs were second best for most of the game and they relied on having to bring on players — Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke — who Ange Postecoglou clearly wanted to rest. This was Spurs’ fifth game in a row without a win since the 4-0 win at Manchester City on November 23. They have not played consistently well in any of those five.

Perhaps things are so tough right now that simply for Spurs to escape with a point and no fresh injuries is a big plus. They will be in a good position when they return to European football in January. But now they must climb back up the league table and reach the League Cup semi-finals. Those are the games that will transform the delicately balance mood at Tottenham. For better or worse.

Have Spurs got a strength-in-depth issue?

All the pre-match attention was on how Spurs would cope defensively without their first-choice players. But what was most striking about this game was that it was Spurs’ front line who looked further away from the required level than anyone.

They had Timo Werner and Brennan Johnson out wide, with Son Heung-min up front, the role he last played in the 1-1 draw with Fulham last month. But it left Spurs struggling for a foothold in the game, unable to press like they want to and unable to retain the ball in the Rangers half. They were reliant on playing on the break. On the rare occasions they were able to get the ball to Werner or Johnson in good positions the attack broke down, whether from a heavy touch, a bad decision, or a lack of options in the box.

Werner has looked low on confidence all season and was hooked at half-time for Dejan Kulusevski. In a press conference after the game, Ange Postecoglou labelled his performance as “not acceptable”.

But even Johnson, on recent evidence, looks weighed down by Spurs’ struggles. He came off after an hour. The problem for Postecoglou is that right now there simply is no one else. Richarlison and Wilson Odobert are out with long-term hamstring injuries. Mikey Moore is recovering from illness. Whatever depth they had in the squad has evaporated away. And their options are looking very thin.

Is the reliance on Kulusevski and Solanke becoming a problem?

It was a relief for Spurs that they were rescued by Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke. But this also points to their broader problems.

Kulusevski came on at half-time and immediately gave them a presence down the right, able to hold onto the ball and carry it forward. He started to change the game but he needed Solanke to arrive on the hour mark for Spurs to really change the momentum. Suddenly they had a presence in the game and a threat to Rangers’ defence.

Kulusevski equalised after good work by Solanke — Spurs would never have got close to a goal without those two on the pitch.

But the issue for Spurs is obvious. Postecoglou clearly wants to manage the load of those two players given the huge games ahead. Spurs go to Southampton on Sunday evening. Then they host Manchester United in the League Cup quarter-final next Thursday. Then Liverpool visit in the league next Sunday.

Both Solanke and Kulusevski will have to start all three games. Clearly, he wanted to give them both a rest tonight for that reason, but he was not able to give them a whole night off. He will have to hope that they hold up through the hardest run of the season.

Do Spurs’ players owe Postecoglou?

The Spurs players are still behind Postecoglou. That has been apparent for some time and was underlined by Cristian Romero’s emotional interview on Sunday evening after the Chelsea defeat when he reiterated his support for the manager through this difficult spell.

The players respect Postecoglou and are committed to his style of play. That has not always been the case with Spurs managers of the recent past.

They must also know that right now most of the public criticism is directed towards Postecoglou and chairman Daniel Levy. The players themselves are getting off fairly lightly. After an hour it felt as if the players desperately owed Postecoglou a performance. They had started the game so poorly, second-best from the start and second to everything. And with better Rangers finishing they would have been out of sight before Spurs’ subs were introduced.

But the way Spurs dug in and fought back for a valuable point perhaps does point to reserves of willingness within the squad. Previous Spurs squads have hidden behind the manager in difficult times. It would be a shame if this group were to do the same.

What did Postecoglou say?

“He wasn’t playing anywhere near the level he should,” Postecoglou said in a post-match press conference when asked why he had withdrawn Werner at the break.

“When you’ve got 18-year-olds it’s not acceptable to me,” he said. “I said that to Timo. He’s a senior international, he’s a Germany international. In the moment we’re in right now, it’s not like we’ve got many options. I need everyone to at least be going out there trying to give the best of themselves. His performance in the first half wasn’t acceptable.”

What next for Tottenham?

Sunday, December 15: Southampton (A), Premier League, 7pm GMT, 2pm ET

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(Top photo: Stu Forster/Getty Images)

This is the third time these two teams have met in a competitive fixture.

There won’t be many supporters inside Ibrox this evening able to cast their mind back to the other two meetings, though.

They were both played in the second round of the 1962-63 Cup Winners’ Cup — Tottenham won 5-2 at home and 3-2 on the road.

Those two victories came in a successful campaign for Spurs, as they went on to lift the trophy in Rotterdam that year.

How is everyone feeling ahead of kick-off then? Well I’d say there’s a good bit of positivity here from a couple of Tottenham supporters on our Discuss tab above, which is open to all subscribers.

And if you don’t yet subscribe and want to get in touch, then simply ping us an email to: livebloguk@theathletic.com

💬 Jake A: “Sweet baby Johnson to the rescue! Ange is gonna come back with some Celtic luck. Scottish destruction. COYS!”

💬 Tate R: “Already got a mate saying Rangers finish Ange off tonight! I reckon he’ll be sacked by Feb OR here until Xmas 2025, no in-between. Levy isn’t going to spend 400m to make the squad deep enough to nearly sustain Ange ball so I can see why people are asking why we’re continuing with him. He should be backed and see where we are in summer 2026 but I’d hate no tangible improvement over that period.”

The gap in quality between Scottish and English sides in the last couple of decades is perhaps best illustrated by Rangers’ record against teams south of the border.

They are winless in their last six matches against Premier League teams, with their last victory in such a fixture against Leeds United in Champions League qualifying all the way back in 1992.

They’ll certainly be sensing an opportunity to end that run today, though.

Rangers manager Philippe Clement is aware of the gulf in quality between these two squads, but is confident his side can bridge the gap on the way to a famous win.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Clement said:

💬 “Everything can be bridged in one night. I had the luck — and it’s not only luck, it’s also a lot of hard work — as a player and as a manager to have several nights where the gap was amazingly big.

“If you then perform and you get the results, those are also the nights you remember all of your life. The moments as a player you remember your team-mates really well. The moments of success, of doing something special.

“So in that way, I hope the players can give themselves and as a team, a special night.”

Hello and welcome again to our live coverage of matchday six from this season’s Europa League — and what a game we have in prospect at Ibrox.

It’s Rangers against Tottenham, Scotland vs England, former Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou against Celtic’s nemesis. There’s so much to anticipate ahead of kick-off.

There is loads for you to catch-up on below and we will have plenty more for you from here until kick-off, with our reporters at the game and contributors watching on.

So don’t go anywhere. We’ve got you covered from here.

Asked if the hostile reception he will receive will fire him up tonight, Postecoglou gave a great answer.

"I don't know if it brings out more of me. I mean, I'm like anyone else, I like a bit of love every now and then, mate," he said. "But I do enjoy that. I always kind of reflect and, you know, we've all lived it is that once you experience football in empty stadiums, you realise how meaningless it is.

"I felt through that whole period, that Covid period, it was meaningless. So I would win games, as much as you go it could be hostile tomorrow, but yeah that's what we love about the game. That's what brings it to life.

"Ultimately, it is a game evokes passions and emotions. Sometimes that's not always positive. Like every human being you'd love it to be positive, but it's not gonna happen. You definitely want that as opposed to playing a game in somewhere sterile where you don't have that."

Unsurprisingly, Postecoglou faced a few questions about his relationship with Glasgow coming into today's game.

"I'm looking forward to it. I had a great time up there in the two years I was there [at Celtic]," the Tottenham boss told Sky Sports. "Fair to say, Ibrox can be fairly intense and I'm sure we'll feel that.

"But it's a great stadium to play football in. The atmosphere, European nights. Even when I was there, they did awfully well in Europe - the first year I was there they got to the Europa League final.

"So you know how European nights, irrespective of their league form, they really rise for, so it's a good challenge for us."

Ange Postecoglou will not be well received at all by the home supporters inside Ibrox this evening.

The Australian spent the 2021-22 and 22-23 seasons as manager of Celtic, arch rivals of Rangers.

Postecoglou was very successful too as he earned the Spurs job after winning the Scottish Premiership in both of those seasons, as well as the domestic treble in the second of the two campaigns.

The Rangers fans have been taking great pleasure in watching him struggle at Tottenham in recent weeks...

The 4-3 loss against Chelsea, as galling as it was, was compounded by more injuries. Centre-backs Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven, after returning from injury, were both subbed off.

Brennan Johnson came off early in the second half because he “didn’t feel well”, according to Postecoglou. Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario is also out for months with a fractured ankle.

Their squad looks thin, and the Rangers match this evening kicks off a run of six games in 18 days across three competitions. So, as The Athletic's Jay Harris outlines below, things will likely get worse before they get better.

Talk about a thriller. Seven goals, two penalties, two potential red-card challenges, a brilliant atmosphere, and all the animosity of a London derby with plenty of history.

Tottenham were beaten 4-3 at home against rivals Chelsea on Sunday, but that scoreline doesn't tell the full story. The hosts raced into a two-goal lead inside 11 minutes after Marc Cucurella slipped twice and gave the ball to Tottenham, who profited ruthlessly.

Jadon Sancho smashed a brilliant long-range shot in off the post, before two silly errors from the home side saw Cole Palmer convert two penalties, the second a cheeky Panenka, either side of an Enzo Fernandez finish.

Home captain Son Heung-min reduced the deficit in the 96th minute after a smart short-corner routine but the hosts could not complete a dramatic comeback, the result helping Chelsea into second and leaving Tottenham in 11th.

After the 1-0 defeat against Bournemouth, Ange Postecoglou described gifting Dean Huijsen a free header from Marcus Tavernier’s inswinging corner as “madness”.

“It is disappointing and not good enough,” he said. “It is not a one-off. We have done that three or four times and paid a price for it.”

What is concerning is that Tottenham keep repeating the same mistakes. As The Athletic argues below, constantly losing in the same manner suggests that something is fundamentally not working.

After Tottenham's last match on the road, a 1-0 loss at Bournemouth, Ange Postecoglou was embroiled in a terse exchange with fans in the away end following the final whistle.

Discussing the incident, he said: “They are disappointed, rightly so. They gave me some direct feedback, which I guess is taken on board. I have no issue with it. I didn’t like what was being said because I’m a human being but you have to cop it.

“I have been around long enough to know that when things don’t go well, you have to understand the frustration and disappointment. They are rightly disappointed tonight because we let a game of football get away from us but that’s okay. I’m okay with all that.”

Wonder what kind of things will be said by the travelling fans if Tottenham lose again tonight...

The FA will investigate after objects were thrown onto the pitch during Tottenham Hotspur’s 4-3 home defeat by Chelsea on Sunday.

Objects were thrown multiple times from the South Stand — an area only home fans occupy — during the first half of the match, while Chelsea were attacking that end of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Cole Palmer, Enzo Fernandez, Jadon Sancho and Pedro Neto were among those targeted while they took set pieces or were in action near the goal.

The FA will now review referee Anthony Taylor’s report on the match and investigate.

Chelsea won the game despite being 2-0 down after 11 minutes, thanks to Dominic Solanke and Dejan Kulusevski. Two goals from Palmer, as well as one each from Sancho and Fernandez, then had Chelsea 4-2 up before Son Heung-min scored a late consolation for Tottenham.

Both sides return to action on Thursday, with Spurs playing Rangers away in the Europa League and Chelsea facing Astana in Kazakhstan in the Conference League.

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The Briefing: Tottenham 3 Chelsea 4: Sancho shines as Spurs crumble and Maresca's side go second in table

(Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)