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Have Liverpool shaken off their early-season struggles?

Galatasaray vs Liverpool - Tuesday, 5.45pm

Liverpool's trip to Galatasaray at the end of September was a miserable one. Victor Osimhen's penalty won the league-phase fixture for the Turkish side, there were injuries to Alisson - who also misses Tuesday's trip to Istanbul - and Hugo Ekitike, and the Reds were poor in both boxes. It formed the beginning of a wretched run which wrecked their Premier League title defence.

But they return to Istanbul in a different place. The shock Premier League loss at Wolves was avenged in the FA Cup on Friday night and, with Florian Wirtz back involved, there is a feeling this Liverpool side are gathering strength and resources for a big push towards success at the end of this season. They are not of their level last year - but they may still have enough to challenge across two-leg ties in Europe.

With the second leg of this last-16 match-up at Anfield, Liverpool just need to ensure they don't go the way of Juventus, who combusted 5-2 at Galatasaray in the first match of their knockout play-off. Juve battled back to almost turn that around in Turin, so the neutral can at least hope for more fireworks.

Peter Smith

A welcome distraction or inconvenience for Spurs?

Atletico Madrid vs Spurs - Tuesday, 8pm

What a strange situation. Qualifying for the Champions League is a huge priority for so many teams. They spend entire seasons pursuing a spot in the competition through league or cup success, with the prestige and financial rewards so valuable. But Spurs - having made it through with their Europa League triumph - may feel they'd be better off not having to face Atletico Madrid in the midst of their Premier League relegation battle.

Igor Tudor's squad is already down to the bare bones, shot of confidence and badly in need of some training-ground time to come up with a structure which can scramble them to top-flight survival. But instead, still reeling from Thursday's humbling at home to Crystal Palace, they are back into battle against Diego Simeone's Atleti. Tudor himself said the situation is not "ideal".

It is the strange paradox of Spurs' season that they have been successful so far in the Champions League, Thomas Frank steering them comfortably into the knockouts while it was all falling apart domestically. Atleti aren't the team they once were either but any consideration of Spurs progressing further in this competition is overshadowed by that dark cloud of Premier League relegation.

A welcome distraction or better off out of it? Like many issues at Spurs right now, supporters may well be divided.

Peter Smith

Howe and Newcastle aim to make history in club's 'biggest game'

Newcastle vs Barcelona - Tuesday, 8pm

Eddie Howe has billed this match as the biggest in Newcastle's history. Expect the home fans in St James' Park to treat it the same way.

As noted by both Howe and Pep Guardiola after Manchester City's comeback win there on Saturday, when Newcastle start with intensity they are extremely difficult to contain. The question is whether they can sustain it.

Howe says his side "ran out of gas" against City but, having protected Anthony Gordon and Joelinton with substitute roles in that Premier League game, the hope will be they can make a fast start count and then keep the pressure on a Barcelona side which tops LaLiga but has shown vulnerability at times this term.

The fixture evokes memories of Bobby Robson. On Newcastle's biggest night, Howe will hope he and his players can write a special chapter in the club's history books of their own.

Peter Smith

Kane's fitness in focus

Atalanta vs Bayern - Tuesday, 8pm

It's the news England fans were fearing - Harry Kane out of action with injury.

Bayern boss Vincent Kompany insists he is "relaxed" about the calf issue which sidelined in-form Kane for the Bundesliga game at Borussia Monchengladbach on Friday but Three Lions supporters will be hoping to see evidence of a quick recovery when the German giants go to Atalanta on Tuesday night.

Kane has been in ridiculous goal-scoring form. His double in Der Klassiker at Borussia Dortmund capped a brilliant display and he has scored 11 in his past seven appearances as he chases more goal records. If he can keep it up until the end of the season, England's World Cup prospects will be seriously enhanced.

But whether it is Kane or Nicolas Jackson up top for Bayern, they will have to be wary against an Atalanta side which put four past Dortmund themselves to reach this stage and bagged three at Eintracht Frankfurt in their other meeting with a Bundesliga opponent this term.

Peter Smith

Are perfect Arsenal ready to answer critics?

Bayer Leverkusen vs Arsenal - Wednesday, 5.45pm

There is no doubting Mikel Arteta is aware of the expectation surrounding Arsenal. Performances of late suggest his players are too. The reality of still being alive in all four competitions this far into the season is taking effect, not just in terms of physical exhaustion but emotional toil as well.

This group are desperate to deliver and that has meant certain games have become tense, ragged affairs, where the football matters much less than the outcome. Take Saturday's 2-1 win over League One side Mansfield as case in point.

Arteta presumably cares little about the criticism his side are attracting given the state of play, only focused on how to turn a campaign with such vast potential into one that ends in silverware. The irony of being branded a team that play 'boring football' and yet the only side in the Champions League knockout stage with a perfect record still intact will not be lost on him.

The Gunners won all eight games in the league phase - the first to do so under the new format. Unlike many Premier League encounters, Arsenal's flair players have found themselves with the time and space to get creative, opening the scoring in every game so far and hitting three or more goals in the last six.

If Bayer Leverkusen have done their homework they will try to make the pitch as tight and compact as possible to stop Arsenal doing to them what they have done to each opponent so far. That will not be easy for a Leverkusen side who conceded more goals than they scored in the league phase, and finished 16th. This is Arsenal's chance to prove some doubters wrong.

Laura Hunter

City can make statement against injury-hit Real Madrid

Real Madrid vs Man City - Wednesday, 8pm

Manchester City and Real Madrid has fast become the modern-day Champions League rivalry thanks in large part to being drawn against each other in the knockout stages every season for the last five seasons.

We have seen them play in a knockout-play-off, a quarter-final and two semi-finals since the 2019/20 season. Now they meet again in the last 16 and City have plenty of reasons to be optimistic about their chances against the 15-time Champions League winners.

This is hardly a vintage Real Madrid side and they are missing key players. Kylian Mbappe and Jude Bellingham are reportedly not expected to recover in time for the first leg, while Rodrygo has been ruled out for the rest of the season with an ACL injury.

City can also take confidence from the fact they have already beaten Real Madrid at the Bernabeu this season. It was a magnificent performance from Pep Guardiola's side, recovering to win 2-1 thanks to goals from Nico O'Reilly and Erling Haaland.

This was just the latest example of Real Madrid struggling to keep up with the intensity against a Premier League side. They have lost four in a row against English teams in the Champions League and there is a growing case to suggest they are lagging behind.

Arsenal demonstrated exactly this point in last season's quarter-finals by dismantling the holders with a 5-1 aggregate win. You can never count Real Madrid out in this competition, but this tie presents City with the chance to make a statement.

Zinny Boswell

Time for Rosenior to lay down a marker with Chelsea fans?

PSG vs Chelsea - Wednesday, 8pm

If Liam Rosenior has learnt anything from predecessor Enzo Maresca, he may have noted the difference a win over PSG can make for a Chelsea boss.

This might not be the Club World Cup final but the opportunity remains for Rosenior to turn this Champions League last-16 tie into a statement victory, to go some way towards shaking off the somewhat unkind tag of 'LinkedIn Liam' thrown at him from some quarters and prove he has the seriousness needed to succeed at Stamford Bridge.

That is something which took Maresca long enough despite leading the club back to the Champions League and winning the Conference League and Club World Cup in his only full season in charge. Rosenior has faced an arguably tougher hill to climb given the optics of his internal appointment from Chelsea's sister club Strasbourg.

Some of Rosenior's public comments, team selections and tinkering have not done a great deal to quell those questions over his suitability for a fan base with fond memories of Mourinho, Conte and Ancelotti and some famous European nights in west London. But the scalp of the same Champions League holders who beat English sides in every knockout round last season would help elevate his credibility in the eyes of those Chelsea fans.

Rosenior knows Luis Enrique's PSG as well as any manager left in the competition given he managed in Ligue 1 for 18 months up to joining Chelsea, and his Strasbourg side remain one of only two sides to come away from the Parc des Princes unbeaten in the league thanks to a 3-3 draw in October. Strasbourg had even led 3-1 at one point and would have gone top of the table that night had they held on to victory.

There have been encouraging signs for the Blues boss who hit on the right formula in the 4-1 win at Aston Villa last week - but then needed extra-time to scrape past Wrexham in the FA Cup after making nine changes in north Wales.

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Tottenham's relegation fears intensified with their 3-1 loss at home to Crystal Palace on Thursday night as a miserable season teeters towards full-blown disaster.

Their latest collapse, which featured a Micky van de Ven red card and three Crystal Palace goals in the space of 19 first-half minutes, extended their winless run to 11 league games. They have lost five in a row in the Premier League for the first time in 22 years.

As Igor Tudor struggles to reverse the tide following his appointment in place of the sacked Thomas Frank, Spurs sit only a point above the drop zone with a trip to Anfield to face Liverpool, live on Sky Sports on Sunday March 15, to come next.

How did a season that started positively unravel so dramatically?

Tottenham fighting relegation: What is the plan?

Tudor refuses to comment on future after Palace defeat

Tottenham 1-3 Crystal Palace - Match report & highlights

Tottenham news & transfers⚪ | Spurs fixtures & scores

From Champions League places to drop fears

Frank's tenure would spiral rapidly but it began with three wins from four Premier League games. Victories at the Etihad Stadium (remember that?) and the London Stadium made him only the third Spurs boss in history to win his first two top-flight away fixtures.

With the 3-0 win over West Ham on September 13, Spurs moved level on points with Arsenal, who now look well-placed to compound their rivals' misery by ending their wait for a Premier League title.

While Arsenal started to consolidate their position at the top of the table, Spurs plummeted into the bottom half with a five-game winless run between November and December.

A 2-0 win over Frank's former club Brentford on December 6 briefly lifted them back into the top half, but back-to-back defeats to Nottingham Forest and Liverpool followed. Soon, concerns over securing a European finish made way to genuine fear of relegation.

Frank was sacked on February 11 with Spurs 16th. They remain there under Igor Tudor but with the gap to the drop zone now reduced to a solitary point. Their probability of relegation, according to Opta, has reached a season high of 16 per cent.

On the back of last season's 17th-placed finish, Opta's statistical relegation probability for Spurs was 13 per cent in August. It has risen along with the anxiety levels of their fans, although many might argue, after another loss, that it remains on the generous side.

The underlying data, which comprises expected goals and expected goals against, suggests Spurs are exactly where they 'should' be, based on the level of their performances.

Our 'expected' table, based on the Sky Sports xG formula, has relegation rivals West Ham above them. Spurs are level with Wolves for expected points, and ahead of Nottingham Forest, Sunderland and Burnley, who occupy the bottom three places.

Injuries, ill-discipline and upheaval

The defeat to Palace, in which Spurs capitulated despite taking the lead through Dominic Solanke, took their total of points lost from winning positions to 15 this season, raising more questions about mentality and continuing a theme of last season.

Since the start of last term, Spurs' total of 44 points lost from winning positions is the highest of any Premier League team, with Fulham next on 39. The Premier League average in that time frame, excluding promoted and relegated teams, is 31.

The game highlighted other issues too, including injuries. Tudor only had 15 senior outfield players available against Palace, and had to name a third goalkeeper and three academy players to fill out his bench. His options were even more limited for the 4-1 loss to Arsenal.

Spurs have lost a combined 1,528 days to injuries this season, a total nearly 25 per cent higher than any other side. James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski have not featured at all. Other injury absentees include starters Destiny Udogie and Mohammed Kudus.

Last season's Europa League triumph clinched Champions League qualification but juggling European and domestic fixtures has made the challenge of managing a threadbare squad even tougher.

Injuries were similarly prevalent last season under Ange Postecoglou but Tottenham's ill-discipline appears a more recent development. Van de Ven's red card comes weeks after his centre-back partner Cristian Romero received his second of the campaign.

Spurs are up to four this season in total, having only received one last term. They have already passed last season's total of yellow cards, having had 74, up from 70, with nine games left to play. Their combined cards total is the highest in the division.

It has all played out to a backdrop of upheaval. Frank was criticised for his failure to introduce a discernible playing style and Tudor's appointment has not yet added any clarity.

Tudor, like Frank before him, has chopped and changed between systems and personnel. Spurs' total of 82 line-up changes is the second-highest in the Premier League this season behind Chelsea. Only three sides have used more starting formations.

The inconsistency might be another contributor to their chaotic displays.

So what now?

It remains to be seen whether the Spurs hierarchy will be tempted into another change of head coach as speculation continues around Tudor's future just weeks after his appointment.

Sky Sports News reports that the 47-year-old is still scheduled to take charge of Tottenham's press conference on Monday ahead of their Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid.

Tudor insists he was encouraged by elements of their performance against Palace and feels results will improve as their injured players return, but the fixture list looks daunting.

The average league position of their remaining nine opponents is 11.11, but they include Aston Villa and Chelsea, as well as Liverpool, in addition to three 'six-pointers' against relegation rivals Nottingham Forest, Wolves and Leeds. It's little wonder fans are worried.

Tottenham's Premier League survival hopes look more desperate by the week. Their chances of relegation now stand at 16.1 per cent after Igor Tudor's disaster start has landed them just one point above the drop zone, without a domestic win in 2026.

Spurs' latest defeat, a 3-1 home loss to Crystal Palace, was their fifth in a row and third under Tudor, who was tasked with the responsibility of turning their ailing campaign around when replacing Thomas Frank 22 days ago. Tudor is their seventh head coach in less than seven years.

He watched as his team capitulated in front of a despairing crowd at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Thursday - conceding three goals in seven first-half minutes after Micky van de Ven was sent off. Some fans were seen fleeing the ground before half-time.

The deepening crisis at Tottenham comes after winning the Europa League last season and advancing to the knockout stage of this year's Champions League, a competition some believe must now be sacrificed, somewhat inexplicably, in order to prioritise Premier League safety.

So, where now? Sky Sports' Michael Bridge answers key questions.

Tudor refuses to comment on future after Palace defeat

Tottenham 1-3 Crystal Palace - Match report & highlights

Tottenham news & transfers⚪ | Spurs fixtures & scores

'If you need a lift, Spurs will help you out'

I did wonder last night if Tottenham would consider making a change. Igor Tudor was brought in because of his reputation as a firefighter but it hasn't happened. Three games, three defeats.

I'm not sure you can look too deeply at the north London derby, Tudor had about 12 fit players to choose from for that game. But last night [against Crystal Palace] was the absolute must-win. No excuses.

Palace have not been on a great run themselves. But if you're feeling flat, Spurs will be there for you. It was quite an atmosphere last night, so many fans just numb. They can't believe what they are seeing. It could even get worse before it gets better.

This is the reality: Tottenham could be the first team in history to look at resting players for a Champions League last-16 tie. I'm genuinely serious about that.

'Spurs too used to losing'

The club are being forced to take stock again. There will be discussions happening today. We talk about who to bring in, what is attractive about Spurs at the moment? This is a massive football club, best stadium, best training ground. But the problem over the past few years is that they have got used to losing.

The key difference now is that three teams were essentially already down by January last season; this year, clubs are fighting for their place. Spurs can't keep relying on West Ham and Nottingham Forest to lose games.

The way I see it at the moment, I don't see where Spurs' next point is going to come from. That is a worry. What do you actually have? There are about 12 fit players; their faces are on the floor. It might look great on the outside, with this state-of-the-art stadium, but inside you've got a massive job.

Are club planning a change?

Tudor is scheduled to take Tottenham's press conference on Monday night ahead of their Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid in the Spanish capital.

It suggests the club are not expected to make another change in the dugout, despite the significant fallout from defeat to Palace, with Tudor dismissing questions over his future and insisting the team are "going in the direction I want to go".

Tottenham have nine games to save their season, next travelling to Anfield in the league to take on Liverpool, before a high-stakes meeting with Nottingham Forest on March 22, live on Sky Sports.

Spurs fixtures & scores

What would implications of relegation be?

Tottenham Hotspur being relegated would be one of the biggest stories in Premier League history. Rival clubs are foaming at the mouth at the idea.

It's simply unthinkable that a club of Tottenham's size slip into the Championship, but they're heading that way after countless defeats.

Many regard Spurs as having the best stadium in the world. It generates on average £4.5m per match. Some Spurs players reportedly face up to 50 per cent wage cuts if they're relegated but just how many would actually stay at the club?

They will have to rip up managerial targets. Does a new director of football come in? Season ticket pricing details have already been released. They will also have to be rethought.

There are a very small minority who think relegation would be a good thing as the club needs a reset and some at board level might deserve it but the truth is, they really don't fully understand the scale of consequences.

Instant promotion would be far from a guarantee with so much upheaval in a short summer.

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Igor Tudor insisted he saw enough in Tottenham's defeat to Crystal Palace to increase his belief that they will avoid the drop.

Tottenham are in crisis and facing the real possibility of relegation after they crumbled to a shocking 3-1 defeat at home following Micky van de Ven's sending off.

Spurs led 1-0 but collapsed after Van de Ven was dismissed, meaning Tudor has lost all three of his games in charge. Spurs - last relegated from the top flight in 1977 - are just one point above the drop zone and face Liverpool at Anfield next in the Premier League

"I understand the fans, they wanted more," he said after the game. "We also wanted more. The red card changed everything.

"It might sound strange, I believe more after this game than I believed before.

"I saw something. I need to choose the right guys because the boat is going in the direction that I need to go, and who is in the boat can stay, otherwise [they] can leave the boat.

"When the other players come back, I'm sure we'll have a good team and come back. It's not easy to accept the moment we are in now."

Spurs' odds of relegation now sit at 19/10, equating to an implied probability of 35 per cent they'll be playing in the Sky Bet Championship next season.

When Tudor was asked whether or not he would be in charge for the next game away at Liverpool, he said: "No comment on that question."

Tottenham news & transfers⚪ | Spurs fixtures & scores

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Sky Sports' Lewis Jones:

"Just 21 days into the reign of Tudor and already a question hovering above the boardroom is one that sounds faintly ridiculous when spoken out loud: can they sack him already?

"Football, though, has never been a place where ridicule stops decisions being made.

"The numbers don't care about timelines or reputations. The Premier League table simply deals in points, and right now Spurs are collecting far too few of them. Each week the cushion shrinks. The odds are dropping. Each week the conversation shifts from 'this will turn' to 'this needs fixing quickly' to 'Lincoln is quite nice at this time of year.'

"And when panic starts to creep into a relegation scrap, clubs reach for the lever they believe can create the quickest jolt - the manager.

"It's the one move a board can make immediately. They can't sign five players tomorrow morning. They can't rewind the season. But they can change the voice in the dressing room.

"Sacking a manager after three weeks might be their only rational move. Three weeks can really be a lifetime in football."

Spurs' next six fixtures

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