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Jamie Carragher has insisted Ange Postecoglou will be sacked if he fails to adapt Tottenham's style of play after their poor start to the season.

Spurs' punishing 4-3 defeat by Chelsea on Sunday, which saw them collapse despite taking a two-goal lead in the opening 11 minutes, left them 11th in the Premier League table and seven points adrift of the Champions League spots.

Mail Sport understands that Postecoglou maintains the immediate backing of chairman Daniel Levy but there is an acknowledgement that recent results, barring the 4-0 victory at Manchester City, have been disappointing.

Indeed, the head coach's reign is expected to come under more internal scrutiny if he is unable to arrest their slump and Carragher believes Postecoglou must be more flexible with his tactical approach if he is to remain in charge.

'I love Ange Postecoglou since he's come into the Premier League, in terms of the football they play,' Carragher said on Sky Sports' Monday Night Football.

'It's exciting. They are the most entertaining team in the last 18 months that I've seen.

'I know a lot of supporters wanted their Tottenham back and in a way, he has given them their Tottenham back. They're exciting to watch. They're almost everyone's second team. But you don't ever think they'll go on and win something.

'Now, is that a little unfair of me to say because do Tottenham ever win anything? That's the point. Is this a team set up to win big things? I said yesterday, if certain things don't change then he'll be out of a job. I don't want him to be.

'I enjoy watching them play, a lot more than previous managers. It has to be better than that for Spurs. No one's expecting Spurs to win the title but if he doesn't bow to certain things we're talking about, then eventually... That's what happens.

'You go to Man City and you win a game 4-0. But then you'll get battered by another team. You don't ever get that consistency you need to be a Champions League club.

'That's what Tottenham want.'

A second loss in four days after the limp 1-0 defeat at Bournemouth on Thursday consigned Spurs to a bitter run of just one win in their last seven games.

However, Carragher has claimed that the blame for the slump does not lie solely with the manager, with the pundit even calling for Levy to step aside.

'It's probably time for somebody else to come in because to not win a trophy in that period of time with the managers they have had, they've never really gone out of their way in the transfer market,' Carragher said on Sky Sports.

'They've spent decent money without blowing other teams out of the water, their wage bill is always one of the smallest and you're never going to get the best players.

'So it might be time for Daniel Levy - who I've been a supporter of because you look at the actual work that he's done - but now that works done in terms of a stadium and a training ground, someone else needs to be in charge of this football club.'

Jamie Carragher has called on Tottenham to make a change in the club's hierarchy by replacing chairman Daniel Levy, stating: 'Someone else needs to be in charge.'

Spurs slumped to a humbling 4-3 defeat against London rivals Chelsea on Sunday after originally taking an early two-goal lead, only to crumble in the second-half.

Cole Palmer topped Chelsea's comeback win with a Panenka penalty that takes the Blues to within four points of Premier League leaders Liverpool, while Spurs remain trapped in the bottom half of the table.

Ange Postecoglou's inconsistent Spurs squad again faltered and Carragher was ruthless in his assessment of the club's current running under Levy.

The businessman became Tottenham chairman in 2001 at just 38-years-old and has been the ruling force on multiple managers and players during that reign, with Postecoglou the latest boss to come under pressure.

His tenure has coincided with Spurs winning just one piece of silverware - the 2007/08 League Cup - and swathes of supporters have previously called for Levy to vacate his position.

Now, Liverpool legend Carragher has suggested the club could be more successful under the guidance of a new chairman.

'It's probably time for somebody else to come in because to not win a trophy in that period of time with the managers they have had, they've never really gone out of their way in the transfer market,' Carragher said on Sky Sports.

'They've spent decent money without blowing other teams out of the water, their wage bill is always one of the smallest and you're never going to get the best players.

'So it might be time for actually Daniel Levy - who I've been a supporter of because you look at the actual work that he's done - but now that works done in terms of a stadium and a training ground, someone else needs to be in charge of this football club,' he added.

Former Spurs midfielder Jamie Redknapp further highlighted Levy's at times controversial decisions to change managers, adding: 'He's had 14 years managers in 23 years, that's a manager nearly every year-and-a-half, something has to change.'

'Well he's not making the right decisions if he's changing manager that often,' replied Carragher.

Levy has not signalled any intention to step down from his position at the club and would likely rule on any decision to replace Postecoglou should the Australian's recent struggles continue.

Speaking after his side's disappointing home defeat against Chelsea, Postecoglou attempted to rally his players by insisting they can still turn their season around.

‘It went like that last year. It’s not like since I have been here this is unusual territory,' said the Spurs head coach.

'Ultimately, my role now is to focus on the things I can control and keep preparing the team the best we can to keep progressing as a football team and turn our season around.'

Tottenham lost 4-3 to Chelsea in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon

Spurs were leading 2-0 after 11 minutes but let the three points slip away

LISTEN NOW to It's All Kicking Off!: Why can't Chelsea win the league? They made seven changes and still scored five. Do you think Liverpool could do that?

Ange Postecoglou is adamant he can turn Tottenham's season around after this Premier League collapse to their London rivals Chelsea, so long as the ‘uncontrollables’ stop hindering his team whenever they threaten to make progress under him.

The Spurs boss described this defeat in front of watching chairman Daniel Levy as ‘painful’ and ‘self-inflicted’, citing the loss of Cristian Romero to injury after they took their 2-0 lead as a catalyst.

Postecoglou referred to that as one of those annoyances he simply cannot control as he explained: ‘Every time we have seemed like we are on solid footing, something has come along which will become an impediment for us. It’s just the way our season has gone.

‘It went like that last year. It’s not like since I have been here this is unusual territory. Ultimately, my role now is to focus on the things I can control and keep preparing the team the best we can to keep progressing as a football team and turn our season around.

‘We don't seem to get that ability to just gain some traction. Every time we've seemed to, something comes along and disrupts us. People keep referring to the (Manchester) City game (which Tottenham won 4-0), and we lost Vic (goalkeeper Vicario) straight afterwards for three months, so it seems like we're just not able to do that. They're uncontrollables.’

Hinting that he needs help in the January transfer window, Postecoglou continued: ‘I don’t sense anybody is feeling sorry for themselves. It is a tough moment, because there are all these tools you can possibly use as a manager when you are going through tough moments to turn things around, and our limited resources from a playing perspective at the moment doesn’t allow us to do that, so you have to find other ways. It’s not through a lack of effort.

‘The players are constantly out there because we can’t rotate. They are giving everything they can. It diminishes performances as well because they probably need a rest but we can’t give them a rest. It is something we need to tackle head on and keep pushing on.’

Moises Caicedo was perhaps fortunate to escape punishment for a naughty tackle on Pape Matar Sarr, with Postecoglou complaining it summed up the current state of Premier League refereeing.

‘Referees don't want to make them (big decisions) because they'll go to VAR, and VAR doesn't want to intervene, so you’re left in no man's land,’ the Spurs boss said. ‘There’s a couple of decisions I thought today definitely went against us. I just don’t think the technology has helped our game.’

Meanwhile, Cole Palmer also spoke afterwards, with the Chelsea superstar saying of his Panenka penalty: 'When I stepped back and looked at the clock, I thought it was a bit frantic, the game was all over the place and I thought the keeper was ready to dive so I just chipped it. Thankfully it went in.’

Tottenham could find themselves in bother for how their supporters targeted Palmer and Co with missiles whenever Chelsea had a corner.

Jamie Carragher and Jamie Redknapp were scathing in their criticism of one Tottenham player for a moment of madness during Sunday's 4-3 defeat to Chelsea.

Spurs made the perfect start to the game, capitalising on two mistakes from Marc Cucurella to establish a 2-0 lead after just 11 minutes.

The Blues hit back through Jadon Sancho before Yves Bissouma recklessly flew into a tackle on Moises Caicedo in the penalty area.

The midfielder got none of the ball as Caicedo went tumbling over and the referee did not hesitate to award the stonewall penalty.

Cole Palmer dispatched the spot-kick and his side went on to win the game and move up to second.

And Sky pundits Carragher and Redknapp both agreed that Bissouma's challenge was 'ridiculous'.

Carragher said: 'Some of the things Tottenham players do is absolutely ridiculous. It's a certain penalty. That is absolutely braindead. Who'd be a manager?'

Redknapp added: 'Caicedo when he went central just started to run the game. Bissouma had 27 seconds of madness.

'He's not showing enough pace to get back in there. He dives into a ridiculous tackle. Absolutely ridiculous.'

Redknapp was also critical of Pape Matar Sarr for his foul on Palmer which gave Chelsea a second penalty.

'You know how skilful he [Palmer] is,' he said. That is so clumsy, that is so bad because this was the moment that cost them the game. Ridiculous challenge, you just cost your team,' Redknapp said.

'That's two ill-disciplined [tackles] from your two defensive midfield players.'

Carragher also had some strong words for Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou.

'Unless he makes this team hard to beat, he won't win anything,' the former Liverpool defender added.

'When I hear a manager say, 'we play the same way [no matter what]', it's nonsense, it's absolute rubbish.'

Carragher continued: 'He [Postecoglou] said something in his interview there about how well they played. He said, 'when we're at our best we cause teams problems'.

'I can't imagine any manager I played for for Liverpool, if we conceded four in a game, would say in the interview that we played well.

'I've never been able to get my head around certain managers who say, 'we play a certain way and we will never change'.

'There's this idea, this pure game, the Tottenham fans saying they've got their Tottenham back. You won't win anything. You won't challenge, [or] do anything.

Chelsea entered the Premier League title picture with a bang after coming from two goals down to beat rivals Tottenham on Sunday night.

Dominic Solanke and Dejan Kulusevski fired Spurs into a comfortable lead after just 11 minutes before Jadon Sancho crashed home to halve the deficit.

A rash challenge from Yves Bissouma then awarded the Blues a spot kick and Cole Palmer kept his cool to slot home the equaliser from 12 yards.

The turnaround was complete when Enzo Fernandez thrashed inside the near post before Palmer converted his second penalty of the game with a cheeky Panenka.

There was still time for Son Heung-min to slot home in stoppage time to set up a grandstand finish but it proved too little, too late for Ange Postecoglou's side.

Mail Sport's KIERAN GILL rates the players at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium...

TOTTENHAM (4-3-3)

Fraser Forster – 5

Tried his darnedest to stop Chelsea from getting back into this after he could not reach Sancho's strike, but ultimately, there was no preventing Palmer's two penalties or Fernandez's blast.

Pedro Porro – 5

Never looked comfortable trying to tie down the slippery Sancho, who got away from him for his goal and had his number with a cute pass in the build-up to Chelsea's first penalty.

Cristian Romero – 5

We weren't sure if Romero was going to be fit enough to start and his afternoon lasted less than 15 minutes as he was replaced by Dragusin, injured again.

Micky van de Ven – 5.5

Massive cheer for him on his first start since October, matched only when he produced a proper old-school defender's clearance. But like Romero, he too went off injured.

Destiny Udogie – 5.5

We rarely saw Neto without Udogie, who was auditioning to be his shadow here. It was a healthy battle from start to finish, but in the end, Chelsea were not to be denied their win.

Dejan Kulusevski – 6

Kulusevski's finish as he slid the ball into the bottom-right corner from 20 yards was practically in slow motion, having created the chance by bursting across the box.

Yves Bissouma – 4

If you are going to go sliding in the box, you need to be sure you're getting there first. But Bissouma wiped out Caicedo to concede the penalty scored by Palmer.

Pape Matar Sarr – 4

Recklessness saw him barrel into the back of Palmer in the box to gift Chelsea their second penalty as the 4-3 defeat was confirmed. Postecoglou's players let him down here.

Brennan Johnson – 5

Capitalised on Cucurella's slip to charge forward and cross for Tottenham's opener. But other than that, we never saw the best of Johnson, who was hooked after 53 minutes.

Dominic Solanke – 5.5

Proper striker's play to get across Colwill to make it 1-0, producing a finish that not many would have pulled off. Not enough chances were created for Solanke otherwise.

Heung-min Son – 4.5

Only had Sanchez to beat when it was 2-2 and Chelsea had stopped playing amid some offside confusion, but the captain totally screwed up the chance. Consolation goal in stoppage time.

SUBS

Radu Dragusin (for Romero 15) – 6

Crucial block to stop Jackson from making it 2-2 before the break.

Timo Werner (for Johnson 53) – 5

Had the opportunity to come back to haunt his old club but never did anything with it.

Archie Gray (for Van de Ven 79) – N/A

James Maddison (for Kulusevski 79) – N/A

Lucas Bergvall (for Bissouma 79) – N/A

MANAGER

Ange Postecoglou – 4.5

Tottenham led 2-0, and yet lost 4-3. Postecoglou's tactics will continue to be questioned because his team really should have shown greater control with their two-goal lead.

CHELSEA (4-2-3-1)

Robert Sanchez – 5.5

No stopping Solanke's finish as it flew by him before he could even react, though could have done better with Kulusevski's strike and leaked a Son consolation late on.

Moises Caicedo – 7

Started at right back, but Chelsea's half-time switch saw him move into midfield proper. That saw him advanced enough to win the most obvious penalty you will ever see.

Benoit Badiashile – 6

The odd naive moment from the man tasked with filling in for the injured Wesley Fofana, but overall, Chelsea got away with whatever defensive mishaps they made.

Levi Colwill – 6

He grew up at Chelsea. He knows what this rivalry means to the fans. Could not get to Johnson's cross before Solanke as Tottenham struck first, but victory was his eventually.

Marc Cucurella – 5.5

Both of Tottenham's first-half goals came as a consequence of Cucurella slipping. Remarkable how the Spaniard accidentally helped Spurs until he rage-changed his boots in the 11th minute.

Romeo Lavia – 6.5

Cautioned for hacking down Kulusevski to kill a counter-attack, and then received a drive-by elbow from the Swede, who escaped punishment. Lavia was replaced at half-time in a Maresca reshuffle.

Enzo Fernandez – 8

Partnered Lavia in the first half, then Caicedo in the second half. And then, boom, he pummelled the ball into the bottom corner for 3-2, a lead Chelsea would never lose.

Pedro Neto – 6.5

Tried to sneak the ball into the bottom corner for 2-2 but Forster saw it coming, stretching out a long leg to stop it. Forever an outlet on the right-hand side.

Cole Palmer – 8.5

Cold. Ice cold. He scored one penalty when the pressure was on. Then he won another. What did he do this time? Panenka, of course.

Jadon Sancho – 8

Pinged a strike in off the post from 22 yards after charging inside and gave Porro nightmares as he created chances galore, including before Chelsea's first penalty.

Nicolas Jackson – 6

Gave Dragusin enough time to get back to block his blast when he was played through with only Forster to beat. On this occasion, the headlines belonged to his fellow forwards.

SUBS

Malo Gusto (for Lavia 45) – 6.5

On for Lavia after he had taken a whack to the head, a reshuffle which worked out well for Chelsea.

Christopher Nkunku (for Jackson 76) – N/A

Noni Madueke (for Neto 86) – N/A

Renato Veiga (for Cucurella 90) – N/A

Joao Felix (for Palmer 90) – N/A

MANAGER

Enzo Maresca – 7

Chelsea fans love him, as shown by how they were singing his name at full-time. They trailed 2-0 after Cucurella's slips, but came back. Title contenders? Why not?

REFEREE

Anthony Taylor – 6

Chelsea fans are not fond of Taylor but he gave them two penalties here – helped that they were two obvious ones to give!

Tottenham fans launched missiles at Chelsea stars Cole Palmer and Enzo Fernandez during a fierce London derby.

Both Cole Palmer and Enzo Fernandez were forced to delay taking corners as pieces of card were thrown in their direction in the first half.

Tottenham stewards intervened to calm the fans down and entered the pitch to remove the objects.

Jamie Carragher said on Sky Sports: 'Where are the people in the stands, the stewards? Don't just stand there watching, get in there.

'What are these Tottenham stewards doing? There's three of them behind Cole Palmer just stood there watching him.'

The objects thrown at the Chelsea players is believed to have come from a tifo used just before kick-off.

The situation became worse towards the end of the half when the game had to be halted momentarily as fans continued to throw objects.

The Chelsea star appeared to laugh off the incidents and continued with the action.

Tottenham fans have a history of throwing objects at Chelsea players as Antonio Rudiger fell victim to it back in 2022.

Rudiger appeared to make the referee aware that a object was thrown in his direction by Spurs fans behind the goal he was defending, with the object understood to have been a firelighter.

Meanwhile, Palmer and Fernandez both came back to haunt Tottenham fans as they scored as Chelsea claimed a 4-3 win.

Palmer scored two penalties, with one of them coming via a paneka in the closing stages of the match.

Follow Mail Sport's live blog for the latest score, team news and updates as Chelsea travel to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to take on Tottenham in Premier League action.

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Tottenham have tended to reserve their very best performances for the other big teams in the Premier League.

Already this season, Manchester rivals United and City have been vanquished by Ange Postecoglou's side, while they showed a lot of resolve when going down 1-0 to Arsenal in September.

Though one could argue that their sternest test yet will come on Sunday when they welcome Enzo Maresca's rejuvenated and bullish young side to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. And following a demoralising defeat by Bournemouth on Thursday night, Postecoglou will be desperate to see a reaction from his troops.

The depth Tottenham fans' anger towards the Australian was on full display at the Vitality Stadium when the former Celtic manager became embroiled in a heated exchange with his own supporters. Last term, a thrilling and often bizarre edition of this fixture marked the end of Postecoglou's honeymoon, with goals from Nicolas Jackson and Cole Palmer downing a depleted Spurs.

Another loss in that vein could spell the end of the Postcoglou era all together. This time around the home outfit will be without the likes of Micky van de Ven, Christian Romero and Guglielmo Vicario and their absence from the matchday squad excludes them from consideration from a combined XI with Sunday's opponents.

But which other Spurs stars have shown enough this season to force their way into a starting line up comprising of stars from the London rivals?

Filip Jorgensen

Yes, Enzo Maresca defiantly claimed that the only player in his squad sure to start against Tottenham will be Robert Sanchez but I can't deny what I see with my own eyes. One of his goalkeeping options is a 22-year-old, increasingly reliable, shot stopper and the other is Robert Sanchez.

In fairness to the Spaniard, his form has marginally improved of late but Jorgensen surely deserves a run in the team after his impressive performance in the Conference League. This point also requires qualification because are competing in a competition they have no right to be in. But against Heidenheim, one of the favourites for the trophy, The Dane proved his quality with some outstanding stops.

He was also given the nod by Maresca in their emphatic 5-1 win over Southampton on Wednesday night as the Chelsea boss finally rewarded some of his European squad with a taste of Premier League action.

Had Vicario been fit he would have given Jorgensen a run for his money but the former Villarreal stopper is well worth an inclusion in this squad. Maresca ought to promote him to No 1 already.

Malo Gusto

Chelsea skipper Reece James has only made four appearances for the Blues this season but the reason no one is really concerned is because of the development of Gusto.

Brought in from Lyon for £26million last January, the 21-year-old has turned skeptics into believers with a string of impressive performances at the back for the west London outfit.

The French international's displays even prompted Maresca to play James in an unfamiliar left-back to ensure that Gusto continued in his preferred position. Tottenham's Pedro Porro makes a decent claim to be included but the Spaniard lacks the completeness that is found in Gusto's game.

Levi Colwill

'I would be scared to play against us,' Colwill boldly stated ahead of Chelsea's clash against Aston Villa. It was a claim that looked sure to backfire at the earliest opportunity but the two matches that have followed have proved the 21-year-old right.

Maresca's side have only lost two games this season; at home to Manchester City on the opening day and away to Liverpool. And they are the league's highest scorers and boast its joint-fourth best defence.

Colwill can take particular credit for the last point, as his partnership with the now injured Wesley Fofana providing the side the perfect platform to build on. The defender is far from the finished product, nor should he be at his tender age. But he is gradually maturing in a fine centre back who could anchor defences for club and country for many years to come.

Radu Dragusin

Fortunate to get the nod due to the absences of the aforementioned Fofana, Van de Ven and Romero, Dragusin has nonetheless done okay for Postecoglou's side.

Admittedly, that is not the most glowing appraisal of his performances, perhaps the point is better explained by saying that the Romanian has shown that he is not responsible for Tottenham's failings.

The 22-year-old has played all 90 minutes in each of Spurs' last four matches, games that include big wins over Aston Villa and Manchester City. However, he was similarly involved as the side failed to beat Fulham and lost at home to Ipswich.

Still, he has deputised well in the absence of Tottenham's first-choice pairing and may even be able to make a case to keep his place when Postecoglou has a fully-fit squad, that's if he can keep improving.

Marc Cucurella

Marc Cucurella might be the best left-back in the Premier League right now. Few players change minds after being brandished a flop but thanks to his exploits with his country and domestic performances, the 26-year-old is starting to get the recognition he deserves.

The former Brighton star has featured in all of Chelsea's league fixtures this term, save for their 2-1 defeat at Anfield and he has done a better job than any defender martialing Arsenal's Bukayo Saka.

Another well-rounded Blues defender, Cucurella is in the form of his life and showing no signs of slowing down.

Moises Caicedo

Few players change minds after being brandished a flop and that statement hold greater weight for the Colombian than even his team-mate above. At the centre of well-publicised tug-of-war last season, Caicedo eventually completed a £115million move to Stamford Bridge and it's fair to say, collapsed under the weight of expectation.

Things did improve for the 23-year-old as the season went on but now with 2023-24 firmly in the rear-view mirror, Caicedo is finally showing Chelsea fans what their club paid for. Caicedo has been ever present for Maresca in the league this year, while zero Conference League minutes show he is just as important to the Chelsea boss as Cole Palmer.

The combative midfielder has even started to add goal contributions to his game, with him currently having one goal and two assists to his name from 14 games, which is just one assist shy of what he managed during the entirety of last season.

Enzo Fernandez

Chelsea spent big on the midfield pairing they have been running with in recent weeks and they are finally starting to convince in tandem. Fernandez has had to bide his time in the Conference League squad for the first couple of months of the season as Romeo Lavia impressed, but the youngsters injury has opened the door to the Argentinian and he has responded with some of his best performances in a Chelsea shirt.

The 23-year-old appears to finally be liberated of the pressure that came with his big-money signing almost two years ago and the emergence of Cole Palmer has removed the pressure to provide match-winning contributions.

Fernandez has started each of Chelsea's last three games as captain and has five goal contributions in his last four Premier League matches for the club.

His return to form has given Maresca a selection headache but its one the Italian will be thrilled to try and figure out.

Cole Palmer

It's fair to say that this has been a slightly more testing campaign for the reigning PFA Young Player of the Year, as Premier League defences have focused even more of their attention on stopping the 22-year-old.

And he is forced to perform under the weight of expectation his remarkable debut campaign in Stamford Bridge produced. Despite that, Palmer still has nine goals and six assists from 14 league games.

He has every chance of bettering improving on his number last term and in a more complete Blues roster, who knows how far that could take them?

Son Heung-min

The Tottenham skipper may not be the vintage version of himself anymore but he remains a danger in and around the area. The 32-year-old has a decent return of three goals and four assists from his 10 Premier League matches, which, when compared to the likes of Mo Salah and Bukayo Saka, does not appear to be overly impressive but given his age, his contribution has been valuable.

Son has chipped in with vital moments in recent Spurs wins against City and Villa but he has been forced to play down the middle of late with the injury to Dominic Solanke.

Back in his preferred left wing position, Son still has plenty to offer this Tottenham team.

Dejan Kulusevski

The Swedish winger has arguably been Tottenham's best player this season and has shown a previously unseen versatility that has aided his side during their injury problems.

Kulusevski may only have two goals and three assists from his 14 Premier League appearances but a lot of his best work is done before the ball hits the back of the net or the final pass is made.

The 24-year-old is an exceptional ball carrier and, like many of his team-mates, has reserved his best displays for the big boys of the division.

Nicolas Jackson

The 23-year-old is the third Chelsea player on this list to have radically altered public perception in the last few months. In fairness to Jackson, his performances have tended upwards for some time now, with a positive run at the end of the last campaign seeing him end an impressive debut season with 14 goals.

This term he has already netted eight times in the Premier League and he has provided three assists for the Blues who are the league's top scorers.

Jackson's form and relationship with talisman Palmer has been so impressive that Maresca has been unable to bring in Christian Nkunku who is actually the club's top scorer thanks to his exploits in the Conference League.

The Senegalese bagged one of the least impressive hat-tricks in this fixture last season. His transformation above all has been a sight to behold.

Tottenham have beaten big clubs this season, but have slipped up in other games

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Trying to make sense of Tottenham is, and always has been, an impossible task. For starters, consider this: ahead of this weekend, only Liverpool and Chelsea had scored more goals than Ange Postecoglou’s side. Only Liverpool and Arsenal had conceded fewer. Only those three teams boasted a better goal difference. They sat first, second and third in the Premier League table.

Tottenham, meanwhile, are in 11th place.

A 4-0 win at Manchester City. Another convincing victory at Old Trafford. Thumping 4-1 wins over Aston Villa and West Ham.

And yet they’ve also had a 1-0 defeat at Crystal Palace. Another, this week, at Bournemouth. A draw at home to Fulham. A 2-1 defeat at home to Ipswich, the Tractor Boys’ first top-flight win in 22 years.

No wonder Postecoglou looks like a broken man. No wonder the fans are angry.

But how? Why can Tottenham beat the big clubs but get turned over by those they should beat other than just shrugging your shoulders and saying, ‘Well, it’s just Tottenham, innit…’

TOTTENHAM REALLY ARE NOT A POSSESSION TEAM

Postecoglou wants his teams to play out from the back. In this column recently, Mail Sport revealed how Tottenham play the shortest goal-kicks of all teams in the division.

Only Manchester City have had more possession this season. The problem is... Tottenham still aren’t a possession team. They are still at their best when they don’t have the ball. Their nine goals from counter-attacks is the most of any side this season.

Of the seven games this term in which they enjoyed most of the ball, Tottenham have won once, against Everton. They lost five of the others and drew against Leicester, and they nearly lost that. Four points.

Of the seven games where they have had the least of it, it’s five wins, a draw and only one defeat. Sixteen points.

His side are packed with pacy wingers who love to spring forward on the break. They don’t have that many midfielders who can pick a lock from deep with the ball at their feet.

On the list of midfielders with the most passes into the final third before this weekend, the first Tottenham name to appear is James Maddison in 16th, with players from 14 different clubs above him.

AWAY DAY BLUES

Those big wins at the Etihad and Old Trafford are the exceptions to the rule under Postecoglou.

Ange’s side have lost eight of their last 12 league games on the road but their struggles stretch far beyond that.

Throughout his entire reign at Spurs, he’s won 65 per cent of his home Premier League games and only 35 per cent of his away games.

Across the 26 home league games in Ange’s tenure, Spurs have taken 151 more shots than their opponents with a goal difference of +21. On the road, over the same number of games, they have only had two more shots than their opponents and scored just five more goals.

For a team who thrive on the counter, despite how much their manager wants them to keep the ball, struggling on the road goes against the usual theory that home sides will come at you more and allow you to hit them on the break.

In fact, home teams allow Tottenham more of the ball than when they’re on their own turf.

Spurs have more passes on the road but fewer in the final third. They have more of the ball but create fewer chances and have fewer shots and have fewer touches in the box.

They allow their opponents far more chances than at home, too, especially down their right flank.

Only three teams lose possession more often in their own third away from home than Spurs, and, under Postecoglou, Tottenham’s opponents have had more than double the number of shots after winning the ball high up the pitch — and more than three times as many of their shots end up in the Spurs net.

You can’t press if you have the ball. But you can be pressed.

‘We’ve again allowed a game of football to get away from us, and a lot of it is self-inflicted,’ said Postecoglou after the Bournemouth defeat. ‘We don’t do ourselves any favours by allowing the opposition to play the game they want to.’

That leads to mistakes. This season, Tottenham have made almost twice as many errors leading to shots in away games than at home but, crucially, all seven of those mistakes on the road have been inside their own box.

You cannot make mistakes like that and not, eventually, pay the price.

NO FIGHT WHEN IT GETS TIGHT

To accuse Tottenham of not having the stomach for the fight when things get tough is a bit of a lazy cliche these days but the facts this season are as follows: when Spurs win, they win big. When they don’t win big, they often lose.

Take their six league victories this season. Two by four goals, three by three goals and one by two. All six of their defeats have come by a single goal.

Postecoglou admits his squad lack ‘leadership and maturity’. Only two of Tottenham’s outfielders are over 30. Only six of them have played more than 100 Premier League games. Arsenal’s squad has 13 outfielders in the 100 club. Manchester City have 12.

Meanwhile, three of the four players signed by Daniel Levy in the summer were teenagers.

SHEETS ARE TOO DIRTY

Spurs don’t concede many but they don’t win the tight games because they don’t keep enough clean sheets. Just one in their last 22 home league games, a streak running back to November last year. Since then, no side in England’s top four tiers have fewer home clean sheets than Tottenham.

Tottenham have now fallen behind 13 times at home in 2024, one shy of a Premier League record for a calendar year.

At least when they concede at home, it’s not the end of things. It actually sparks something. Spurs have gained nine points from losing positions at home this season. Away from home, zero. When they go behind on the road, as they did at Bournemouth, it’s curtains.

For once, it’s not all to do with set-pieces. For all the talk of Tottenham’s Achilles’ heel, they’ve only conceded three goals from corners this season. That’s the same as set-piece kings Arsenal.

ARE THEY KNACKERED?

Tottenham looked spent at Bournemouth on Thursday night.

Eight of Postecoglou’s squad have played more than 900 league minutes this season; ahead of the weekend only Newcastle had more. There’s plenty of other teams on eight but none play as intensely as Postecoglou wants his Spurs side to compete.

No team sprinted more than Tottenham over the first 14 games. Only the Cherries covered more distance. No side have won more possession in the final third than Spurs.

Of those players with more than 900 league minutes, Tottenham were the only team with two players in the top five for distance covered per 90 minutes: Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke.

No one has applied more pressure on their opponents this season than Solanke. No wonder he dropped to his knees after Spurs knocked City out of the Carabao Cup.

No wonder, too, that Tottenham are struggling with injuries. Postecoglou is without first-choice centre backs Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero and is now without Ben Davies as well.

For a team who play at full tilt, it’s putting the squad, performances and, crucially, results under strain.

Enzo Maresca insists Chelsea are not favourites to beat Tottenham, despite some Spurs supporters claiming on radio phone-ins they are tempted to stay away from Sunday's London derby out of fear of a humiliating spanking.

Ange Postecoglou’s team find themselves in a tough moment, two weeks on from their 4-0 beating of Manchester City.

‘First of all, the fans are going to be there, no doubt,’ Maresca said. ‘And second, we are not favourite, absolutely not. ‘They are playing European competition, like us, we are there. But not because we are second in the table, we are favourite, absolutely not.’

Like Chelsea now, Tottenham were briefly talked up as Premier League title contenders last season under Postecoglou, but Maresca says he is not using Spurs’ sudden struggle as a lesson to be learned.

‘I don’t think we need Ange’s experience or Tottenham’s experience to understand things can change quick,’ he said. ‘Every season in football, in England, in Spain, in Italy, every country, things can change quick.’