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Tim Sherwood says he would keep Tottenham in the Premier League - and has outlined how he would do it.
Spurs face a huge fight to avoid relegation after their 3-0 humiliation at home to Nottingham Forest on Sunday left them still without a win in 2026 and just one point above the bottom three going into the international break.
Igor Tudor’s future is in doubt after that defeat, with the club assessing whether another managerial change will give them the best chance of avoiding the drop.
Tudor has overseen one win from seven games since taking over, including four defeats out of five in the Premier League.
Spurs have three weeks before their next game away at Sunderland on April 12, which gives them time to consider what to do for the final seven games of the season.
Spurs have reportedly revisited the idea of appointing a permanent head coach before the end of the season, with Roberto De Zerbi one of the names being discussed.
Sherwood, who managed Spurs for the second half of the 2013-14 season and expressed interest in the Spurs job after Thomas Frank was sacked in February, has explained what he would do to get them away from danger if he was approached.
"I would keep them in the Premier League," Sherwood said on Sky Sports. "I believe that someone with common sense keeps them in the Premier League.
"They have the quality to be able to do it. You have to get them feeling good again, you have to get the confidence in the group.
"It's not complicated, you drill them every single day... 11 vs 11 so they know exactly where their positions are.
"When Micky [van de Ven] starts dribbling mazily and taking the ball up the field, you stop him. If [he] is having to do that and [Cristian] Romero is having to burst forward to affect forward areas, it's because we are not doing something right up there.
London rivals see plight worsen in desperate four-way fight with Nottingham Forest and Leeds for top-flight survival
Relegation rivals: One of Nottingham Forest, Tottenham, West Ham or Leeds will be in the Championship next season
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George Flood
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Tottenham’s fears over relegation from the Premier League have deepened dramatically after a costly home defeat by Nottingham Forest.
Spurs looked to have begun to turn a corner at long last ahead of Sunday’s proverbial home six-pointer against a rival for the drop, battling to a late draw at Liverpool before beating Atletico Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie to ease the intense pressure that had already built on interim head coach Igor Tudor.
A huge show of backing and support from the Tottenham fanbase proved to be in vain on Sunday however, with questions over Tudor’s position arising quickly again after only seven matches in charge following an ugly 3-0 loss to Forest.
Spurs performed well in the first half, but were brushed aside in a woeful display after the interval courtesy of goals from Igor Jesus, former Tottenham transfer target Morgan Gibbs-White and Taiwo Awoniyi.
Tudor was informed of a family bereavement straight after the game in north London, with Tottenham since confirming the passing of his father, Mario.
Spurs have still yet to win a single league game in 2026 and now sit just a point and one place above the relegation zone, with West Ham staying in 18th for now after a 2-0 loss at Aston Villa. Leeds, meanwhile, played out another goalless draw against Brentford on Saturday night.
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With Wolves and Burnley seemingly all but consigned to the Championship for next season, the battle to avoid that final relegation spot remains a four-horse race with only seven matches left to go this term.
But who has the toughest run-in? Standard Sport compares the respective fixture lists below.
Leeds
Leeds continue to find goals very hard to come by, scoring once in their last five league games
AFP via Getty Images
Leeds are currently in the best position of the four teams in question, sitting 15th and four points clear of danger as things stand.
Daniel Farke’s side have scored only one goal in their last five Premier League games, with three straight blanks and 0-0 draws in back-to-back games.
It certainly isn’t pretty but is effective enough in keeping their heads above water, though you imagine they will have to improve for a trip to rivals Manchester United after the international break.
Leeds will look upon the visits of Wolves and Burnley to Elland Road as must-win games, while they also have trips to West Ham - whom they also face in the FA Cup quarter-finals - and Tottenham left on their schedule to go along with trickier assignments against Bournemouth and Brighton.
April 13: Manchester United (A)
April 18: Wolves (H)
April 25: Bournemouth (A)
May 2: Burnley (H)
May 9: Tottenham (A)
May 17: Brighton (H)
May 24: West Ham (A)
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest’s 3-0 win at Tottenham will give them renewed confidence in battle against the drop
Action Images via Reuters
Forest’s emphatic win at Spurs will offer renewed hope and belief over their survival chances under a fourth permanent manager of the season in ex-Wolves boss Vitor Pereira, having previously not won in the league since January 25.
Confidence had already been boosted by a penalty shootout win over Danish side FC Midtjylland in the Europa League last 16, with a two-legged quarter-final tie against league phase opponents Porto now on the horizon.
Forest have back-to-back home games coming up to try and build more momentum, though one is notably trickier than the other on paper as Aston Villa - who were admittedly badly out of form before beating West Ham - and Burnley both head to the City Ground.
Trips to Sunderland and Chelsea are not ideal despite the Blues’ own poor recent form, while there is also a tough trio of games to close out the season - against Newcastle, Manchester United and Bournemouth.
Time may well be of the essence for Forest to bank enough points for survival in the short-term, rather than relying on those tricky-looking fixtures in the final weeks.
April 12: Aston Villa (H)
April 19: Burnley (H)
April 24: Sunderland (A)
May 2: Chelsea (A)
May 9: Newcastle (H)
May 17: Manchester United (A)
May 24: Bournemouth (H)
Tottenham
Tottenham appeared to have started to turn a corner before Nottingham Forest debacle
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West Ham will have already played against Wolves by the time Spurs return to action with a difficult-looking trip to meet a Sunderland side on a high after their last-gasp Tyne-Wear derby win over Newcastle.
They could therefore be in the relegation zone before a ball is even kicked at the Stadium of Light.
Tottenham’s enduringly rotten home form means that games against Brighton and Everton will be hard going, while trips to Villa and Chelsea may not yield much at all.
They surely must beat Wolves away and Leeds at home as a bare minimum and hope to scramble enough points elsewhere against the odds to avoid the ignominy of a first top-flight relegation since 1977.
April 12: Sunderland (A)
April 18: Brighton (H)
April 25: Wolves (A)
May 2: Aston Villa (A)
May 9: Leeds (H)
May 17: Chelsea (A)
May 24: Everton (H)
West Ham
West Ham need to get injured star man Crysencio Summerville fit for the crucial run-in
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West Ham’s recent resurgence that saw them claim 15 points from their last nine league games was ended at Villa Park, where they were too easily beaten.
Next is a home FA Cup quarter-final date with Leeds, whom they also host on the final day of the campaign in a match that could yet have enormous stakes.
Nuno Espirito Santo will rightly see the visit of former club Wolves to the London Stadium as a must-have three points, though the rest of West Ham’s run-in looks tricky, with home games against Arsenal and Everton plus short trips to Crystal Palace and Brentford, and a journey to Newcastle on the penultimate weekend.
Getting Crysencio Summerville back from a calf injury suffered in the FA Cup fifth-round win over Bournemouth feels essential if the Hammers are to pull themselves out of the mire.
April 10: Wolves (H)
April 20: Crystal Palace (A)
April 25: Everton (H)
May 2: Brentford (A)
May 9: Arsenal (H)
May 17: Newcastle (A)
May 24: Leeds (H)
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Spurs have picked up another new injury, but some imminent returnees are expected
Comeback trail: Mathys Tel, Guglielmo Vicario, Mohammed Kudus
Getty / London Standard
Arthur Ferridge
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Tottenham’s survival bid took another knock on Sunday as they were beaten 3-0 by Nottingham Forest, and to make a bad afternoon worse, they picked up a new injury worry in the process.
Mathys Tel had impressed throughout the match, but appeared to pick up a knock and limped off with just over 20 minutes left to play.
He joins a number of team-mates on the treatment table, though Igor Tudor’s selection headaches have abated somewhat in recent days.
The likes of Lucas Bergvall and Destiny Udogie made comebacks in the defeat of Atletico Madrid midweek, boosting Spurs’ chances of staying up this season.
And they will hope to welcome yet more returnees to the squad following the international break, with Spurs facing a three-week break before their next match away at Sunderland.
With that in mind, here is all the latest Tottenham injury news and potential return dates...
Mathys Tel
Forward Mathys Tel was among Spurs’ brightest sparks in defeat by Forest, but he hobbled off with an apparent knock after 67 minutes.
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No concrete update on his condition was given at full-time, though Bruno Saltor, who took the post-match press conference as Igor Tudor dealt with a family bereavement, suggested he could miss international duty.
Mathys Tel is the latest addition to Tottenham’s injury list
REUTERS
Saltor said of the Frenchman: “We are still assessing and will see if he can go with the [France] national team.”
Tottenham will hope to have him back fit after the international break, but it remains to be seen how severe his injury really is.
Potential return date: Unknown
Guglielmo Vicario
Guglielmo Vicario started against Forest, but it will be his last competitive appearance for some time.
Questions were raised as to his fitness after he was left out of Italy’s squad for the March international break, and Spurs soon confirmed that he is due to undergo surgery on a hernia.
The minor procedure is set to keep him sidelined for around a month, and has been timed so as to impact Tottenham’s run-in as little as possible.
Guglielmo Vicario will go under the knife during the international break
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While he will undergo the bulk of his recovery during the international break, he will likely miss a handful of ties afterwards, with Antonin Kinsky set to deputise.
A club statement read: “We can confirm that Guglielmo Vicario will undergo surgery next week on a hernia.
“The minor procedure for the Italy international goalkeeper has been timed to have as minimal impact on our season as possible.
“Guglielmo will commence his rehabilitation with our medical staff immediately, and it is hoped that he could return to action within the next month.”
Potential return date: Mid-April
Mohammed Kudus
Ghanaian winger Mohammed Kudus impressed in the early days of his Tottenham career before being struck down with a hamstring injury in January.
He is yet to return to the side, but Tudor is optimistic he could return in the three-week break before Spurs’ next match.
Kudus is expected back in full training within the next fortnight, suggesting he could feature when Spurs make their return after the international break.
Tudor said: “We have these three big weeks after the game on Sunday.
“[Kudus will return for] probably some part of things with the squad, maybe in ten days? I'm not sure, we need to check, but he is progressing very well, already with the ball.
“We hope the medical staff will make us some nice surprise. It will be very, very, very important to have them.”
Potential return date: April 12 vs Sunderland (A)
Mohammed Kudus has been sidelined since January but is approaching a comeback
Action Images via Reuters
Yves Bissouma
Yves Bissouma was ever-present in the earliest days of Tudor’s reign, but was absent from the squad to face Liverpool.
Tudor confirmed that he would miss that match, but added no further detail.
He was again left out of the squad to face Forest, and Tottenham will hope he can shake off his injury during the international break.
Potential return date: Unknown
James Maddison
Forward James Maddison is yet to touch the pitch this season having undergone surgery on a torn ACL in pre-season, but it is hoped he can return before the season is out.
Speaking this week, Tudor said he was hoping for a ‘nice surprise’ from his medical staff in the coming weeks after revealing that he was doing ‘interesting things’ in his rehabilitation programme.
He said: “Maddison as well. We hope the medical staff will make us some nice surprise. It will be very, very, very important to have them.”
Asked if Maddison could play this season, Tudor said: “Yes. Maddison is already doing interesting things with the ball, sprinting as well. I saw him, he’s positive.”
It is hoped Maddison can make a return to the pitch before the campaign is out, though he likely will not be able to contribute to the relegation battle.
Potential return date: May
Rodrigo Bentancur
Rodrigo Bentancur has been sidelined since suffering a hamstring injury and undergoing surgery in January, but there is optimism that he will be back in the fold after the March international break.
Speaking last week, Tudor said he was making progress in his recovery and closing in on a return to first-team training.
Igor Tudor has suggested Rodrigo Bentancur could be back in first-team training in the coming weeks
Getty Images
Issuing a team news update ahead of facing Nottingham Forest, he said: “[Mohammed Kudus will return for] probably some part of things with the squad, maybe in ten days? I'm not sure, we need to check, but he is progressing very well, already with the ball. Rodrigo [Bentancur]as well.”
Potential return date: April/May
Dejan Kulusevski
The mystery of Dejan Kulusevski’s fitness persists. The Swede has not played this season after undergoing surgery on a patella injury last season, and does not seem to be close to a comeback.
While he has been sharing videos on his social media of himself undergoing rehabilitation at Hotspur Way, he has not been named to Graham Potter’s Sweden squad for the March international break.
Speaking in February, Tudor said he was unsure whether he could return this season: "We hope so, in this moment we don't know. He's had really big problems. But he's positive. And also, the doctors are positive. So we'll see, next week, how it's going.”
Asked last Friday whether he had an update on the Swede’s condition, Tudor added: “No, not yet.”
Potential return date: Unknown
Wilson Odobert
Wilson Odobert will miss the remainder of the campaign after suffering an ACL injury when facing Newcastle in February.
The 21-year-old Frenchman has undergone surgery and will return next season.
Potential return date: Late 2026
Ben Davies
He is out of contract in the summer and in a race against time to feature again for Spurs before then.
Potential return date: Unknown
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Some 10,000 fans lined the roads to welcome the team bus but Spurs could not get by Nottingham Forest in relegation six-pointer
Thousands of seats were left empty by full-time at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Action Images via Reuters
Dom Smith
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The sleepwalk towards relegation continues for Tottenham.
A bruising 3-0 defeat against a Nottingham Forest side who began the day a point and a place below them saw Spurs thrashed in a relegation six-pointer as they dropped to 17th.
It seemed they may have turned a corner after their 1-1 draw at Anfield and first victory under Igor Tudor in beating Atletico Madrid on Wednesday, and yet they are now back to square one and facing the drop with just seven games remaining.
Goals from Igor Jesus, Morgan Gibbs-White and Taiwo Awoniyi punished Spurs in their own back yard.
Brutal defeat stings for Spurs
Right from the moment around 10,000 Spurs fans lined up on the High Road to greet the team bus on a momentous day in the sunshine, it was unmistakably clear that this was a match where the result mattered far, far more than the performance.
How wrong it all went for Tottenham.
They were playing well and had been the better team when they fell behind to Igor Jesus’s header from an unmarked position from a corner as half-time approached. It knocked the stuffing out of a nervy Tottenham Hotspur Stadium where the anxiety was palpable but the atmosphere had been good.
Tottenham fans were out in force to welcome the team bus ahead of their defeat by Nottingham Forest
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The second half was far worse. Spurs looked out of ideas and cripplingly short of a cutting edge. A Tottenham player taking too long to move the ball on would be met with groans — and that happened all too often.
Spurs suffered the ignominy, after Eberechi Eze, of once again conceding a goal to a player they thought they were about to sign in the summer when Morgan Gibbs-White, totally unmarked, stuck the ball not past Guglielmo Vicario but through him.
When Awoniyi made it three on 87 minutes, queue the mass exodus as fans headed for the exits. In truth, though, that had begun before the 70th minute on an afternoon where Spurs needed to be front-footed but were instead one-paced, toothless, and leaky.
Half-time tactical switch backfires
It made plenty of sense to start with a back four and Richarlison and Dominic Solanke in a front two following the win over Atletico, and Spurs had been the better team at half-time despite trailing.
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Why, then, Tudor felt he needed to switch things up at the interval is anyone’s guess. It didn't work out at all.
Lucas Bergvall and Destiny Udogie came on for Micky van de Ven and Djed Spence but both were error-prone and guilty of looking off the pace.
Off the pace: Lucas Bergvall
Bradley Collyer/PA Wire
On one promising run forward by Cristian Romero, Bergvall got in his way. Udogie, meanwhile, looked rusty following injury and was miles off it.
Spurs lacked a midfield link and were too laboured in bringing the ball forward from defence into midfield and into attack. Forest defended resolutely and with sturdy organisation while also maintaining an offensive bite Spurs could only dream of. Tudor’s half-time changes backfired.
A new injury worry
Mathys Tel had been the brightest player in white with the possible exception of Archie Gray. He had taken it upon himself to be the man Tottenham were relying on to progress the ball up the pitch, taking calculated risks and beating his man time and again down the left.
The sight of play being held up while he received treatment will therefore have been the last thing Tottenham fans wanted to see.
In a season where the Spurs have been ravaged by injuries, Tel was just about the last senior outfield player yet to have pulled up. No longer. Off he went after 67 minutes, moving gingerly and replaced by the ineffective Randal Kolo Muani, a rare livewire forced off.
Spurs fans will be hoping and praying Tel is fine. Seven crucial games await, and they need his attacking threat when so few others are pulling their weight.
Injury worry: Mathys Tel
REUTERS
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