Football London

While the euphoria of lifting a European trophy will not wear off for Tottenham fans for some time, the reality of football could be set to bite hard in the coming weeks.

Ange Postecoglou's future is still unclear despite winning the Europa League after their 1-0 victory over Manchester United in Bilbao. That in itself is not so surprising given just how badly the club's Premier League campaign went.

Spurs finished 17th in the table, 13 points above the relegation zone and a whopping 28 places behind the automatic Champions League qualification places. However, Tottenham will still find themselves in Europe's top competition next year thanks to their trophy win at San Mames.

There has been plenty said about Postecoglou's future, including a hint from the man himself as he stated at the trophy parade that "season three is always better than season two!"

football.london understands that a decision over Postecoglou's future as Tottenham Hotspur head coach is unlikely to take place this week, however. A lot of the club's staff, including the Australian, have gone on holiday this week after a long and difficult season.

Daniel Levy's all-important decision cannot afford to be left too long, however. But will he stay or will he go? football.london's writers give their view below...

Rob Guest

For me, Ange Postecoglou deserves to remain as Tottenham head coach heading into the 2025/26 season after guiding the club to some much-needed silverware. I fully get Spurs supporters pointing to the club's wretched Premier League record this season, which was unacceptable, but Postecoglou has delivered a major European trophy and Champions League football, thus seeing Spurs achieve their target set out at the start of the season.

Postecoglou has certainly learnt a number of lessons from how the season panned out and he will undoubtedly take them into next campaign if he's allowed to do so. Tottenham could quite easily kick on in the Premier League next season and get back towards the top but key to that will be the balancing act between domestic and European football.

Adding to the squad with more experience will only help and the same goes for some luck on the injury front. There are not many standout candidates to replace Postecoglou right now and I do feel that any potential new manager coming in may have lost before he's even started when it comes to the dressing room given how much the players love the Australian.

As he pointed out, season three is always better than season two. Now let's see if that is the case with Postecoglou at the helm.

Joe Doyle

I think the fact that no decision has been made yet points towards Postecoglou leaving. If he was definitely staying, it would have made sense to wrap the situation up and add some certainty to the recruitment process ahead of a huge season for Spurs.

I assume Daniel Levy will be using the time to look at potential candidates to replace the Australian and seeing if any of them are viable options.

Postecoglou does have two big things going for him, though. The first is his popularity with the fans. Naturally the trophy has given him a huge dose of good will, though he still retained a lot of popularity with the fans despite the poor results, in part due to his character and in part due to his style of play: if he was getting terrible results with a boring style, he'd have a lot less credit in the bank.

The second is his standing with the team. It'd be a huge knock to their confidence if Postecoglou was to leave now.

Ultimately, I still think that it's a decision that Levy will take. There is a lot which can be learned from Manchester United; I think that they allowed Erik ten Hag to stay at the club beyond the point of no return due to their FA Cup victory, which was ultimately papering over some very big cracks.

Sam Truelove

Ange Postecoglou can't be sacked, can he? The narrative has changed so much since the Europa League final win and supporters have made their feelings known in the past week or so.

I just feel Postecoglou deserves to stay. He was extremely unlucky with injuries during the 2024/25 campaign and if the club can bring in a few additional quality players, the Australian may finally have the tools to do something really special in north London.

If Daniel Levy were to sack the former Celtic man, the negativity and hatred towards the Spurs chairman may well just jump up a notch. It's not worth the risk when the club are riding one hell of a wave at the moment.

Yes, if Postecoglou starts the season poorly then it's possible he is relieved of his duties fairly early. But he at least deserves the opportunity to build on the Europa League success. Otherwise, what was the point?

Lee Wilmot

I must have flip-flopped with this decision so many times over the last few months.

I could not see any way in which Postecoglou would keep his job given the way that Spurs performed in the Premier League this season.

But just look at what a trophy does for you and for the feeling in the fan base.

You could see from the trophy parade along the High Road on Friday just what this achievement means to the supporters, who have been starved of any kind of success for far too long.

The majority of people who may have turned against Postecoglou are now back on his side. The cheers when he was seen on the big screens for the first time at the parade said it all, as did the chants when he gave his speech on the stage and the chants for him inside Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the final game of the season on Sunday.

When it comes to Daniel Levy, he has also got what he desperately craved - a trophy and Champions League football again.

Postecoglou has delivered, so he surely needs to be given a transfer window and at least a few months of the new season to prove he can continue on this journey with Tottenham. The decision needs to be made quickly, though, as the summer is hugely important to give him, or someone else, the squad that can challenge on two fronts.

Alasdair Gold

It would be classic Spurs to finally get something good after all these years and sour it. Postecoglou has just handed the club their first trophy in 17 years and their first European title in 41 and he's brought the fans and club closer together than ever before in the modern era.

That night in Bilbao and that Friday evening in N17 were something that the supporters will remember forever. Tottenham managers in the past have been allowed to start the following season based on far, far less than winning a major European title. The Australian has delivered a trophy, Champions League qualification and a spot in the UEFA Super Cup. Yes, the Premier League season was dreadful but there was a context to most of it and he's achieved every target asked of him.

Postecoglou has the dressing room firmly behind him, the four leaders of the playing group love him and if he gets the backing he requires then Spurs can kick straight on and plan for an exciting season ahead. If they ditch him, then they're back to square one once more and everything that goes into yet another rebuild with the knock-on effect that will have in Tottenham waiting to see what they need to do in the transfer market while another man analyses the squad.

If you can win a trophy and get immediately sacked by Tottenham despite their lack of any tangible success in recent decades, then most managers are going to look at that seat in the dugout and ask themselves whether it's actually worth the hassle.

Postecoglou has finally changed the narrative around the club, sacking him would reverse that. It would be utterly Spursy.

The return of the Champions League anthem at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium next season will be a most welcome addition. Last featuring in the competition during the 2022/23 campaign following a disappointing round of 16 exit at the hands of AC Milan, Spurs will be attempting to make their mark against Europe's best sides as Europa League winners.

It just remains to be seen if Ange Postecoglou will be the man to lead them in their Champions League journey amid so much talk about his future right now. football.london understands a decision over the Australian's future as Spurs head coach is unlikely to take place this week.

Regardless of who is in charge come the start of next term, Tottenham have Champions League football to look forward to come September. The competition does have a different look about it since Spurs' last Champions League involvement back in March 2023, though.

Previously operating with eight groups of four prior to the knockout phase commencing, the Champions League now features a 36-team league table that sees the top eight advance to the round of 16 and the sides between ninth and 24th contesting the knockout phase play-offs. All teams play eight league phase games and the majority of the draw is completed by computer due to the complex nature of it.

As ever, clubs will be split into four pots but this time each side is drawn against two teams from each of the pots to determine their eight league fixtures. Tottenham look set to be in Pot 3 as things stand right now but there is a chance they move up to Pot 2 if one of or both Benfica or Club Brugge fail to make it to the league phase.

All the information regarding Champions League pots, draw date and league phase fixture dates can be found below:

Teams already qualified and likely pots

Pot 1: Real Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, PSG, Inter Milan, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona.

Pot 2: Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen, Atletico Madrid, Atalanta, Villarreal, Juventus, Eintracht Frankfurt.

Pot 2/3:Tottenham, PSV.

Pot 3: Ajax, Napoli, Sporting CP, Olympiacos, Slavia Prague, Marseille.

Pot 4: AS Monaco, Galatasaray, Union SG, Athletic Club. Newcastle United.

Champions League 2025/26 schedule

League phase

Matchday 1: 16-18 September

Matchday 2: 30 September-1 October

Matchday 3: 21-22 October

Matchday 4: 4-5 November

Matchday 5: 25-26 November

Matchday 6: 9-10 December

Matchday 7: 20-21 January

Matchday 8: 28 January

Knockout phase play-offs

First leg: 17-18 February

Second leg: 24-25 February

Round of 16

First leg: 10-11 March

Second leg: 17-18 March

Quarter-finals

First leg: 7-8 April

Second leg: 14-15 April

Semi-finals

First leg: 28-29 April

Second leg: 5-6 May

Final

Saturday, May 30, 2026 at Puskas Arena, Budapest.

Champions League draw dates

League phase: 28 August

Knockout phase play-offs: 30 January

Round of 16/quarter-finals/Semi-finals/final: 27 February

Cristian Romero has signed off his Tottenham Hotspur season with a message to the club's supporters that certainly looks towards the future at the north London side.

The World Cup winner missed the final game of the season against Brighton with a toe injury he has been struggling with this season but Romero did star in the Europa League final victory against Manchester United on Wednesday night in Bilbao. The Argentine was named player of the tournament in the days afterwards.

The 27-year-old has been linked with a move away from the club, with Atletico Madrid strongly touted as his destination, with two years remaining on the contract at Spurs.

However, Romero very much appeared to be looking to the future in north London with his latest post about the club.

"WINNERS!!! We achieved what we wanted this season as a group, and that’s what matters and….my name is part of the history of this beautiful club @spursofficial," he wrote. "I want to thank you all for the love and support every day despite everything, but I have no doubt that staying together led us to success. We must continue; this is the path."

That final line is the one that is likely to make Spurs fans happy and Romero's talk about staying together bringing success and that needing to be continued also appears to be backing for Ange Postecoglou, who will find out this month if he is to continue with the club after finally ending its 17-year trophy drought.

Romero has been a staunch supporter of the Australian and earlier this season briefly reposted a comment on X (formerly Twitter) that read: "Oh no, he clearly signal that he would leave if Levy sack Ange, unfortunately the only two who has ambitions."

That repost was later undone but the Argentine and Postecoglou have always maintained a close relationship and could be seen sharing a long embrace at Friday's trophy parade. The Spurs head coach said on Sunday that the north London club needs to do everything to keep the centre-back.

"I think Romero is absolutely important to keep at this football club. You just saw the way he’s been in the last [weeks] and he hasn’t been fully fit to be fair with his toe, but you’ve seen he’s a World Cup winner," he said.

"He is a winner. You saw that in all the big games we’ve had and the lads certainly respect him very highly. He makes them walk a bit taller, so yeah from my perspective it is a no-brainer that making sure players like him (stay), because if he goes, who do you replace him with? There is not too many out there like him. It will be very important for the club to try and retain him, and retain him for the longer-term I think."

A decision over Ange Postecoglou's future as Tottenham Hotspur head coach is unlikely to take place this week, football.london understands.

The Australian made history at Spurs by leading the club to their first European trophy in 41 years with victory over Manchester United in the Europa League final in Bilbao. That was followed by a memorable open-top bus parade through Tottenham with the trophy in front of an estimated 220,000 supporters.

While that was Spurs' first piece of major silverware of any kind in 17 years and brought Champions League football for next season as well as a place in August's UEFA Super Cup, the club's Premier League season was horrendous with a 17th place finish and a record 22 defeats. It is that side of Tottenham's campaign that has led to doubts over Postecoglou's future at the north London outfit.

It is believed that any decision to be made by chairman Daniel Levy about the Australian is unlikely to occur this week with most staff, including Postecoglou, heading straight off on their post-season holidays after the final game of the season against Brighton. No meetings are understood to have taken place before that happened.

football.london understands that there remains a chance the 59-year-old could stay in place as head coach after ending Spurs' long trophy drought, which has brought a huge surge of gratitude from the fanbase behind Postecoglou and a feeling among many of them that he has earned the right to carry on into next season.

The Tottenham boss, who was announced with a four-year contract when he joined from Celtic in 2023, whipped the huge crowd into a frenzy after the parade on Friday by declaring that "like the best television shows, season three is better than season two."

The supporters then began singing his name just three minutes into Sunday's defeat to Brighton as well as at further points during the match before doing so once again after the game during the team's walk around the pitch with the Europa League trophy.

Levy will be aware that there will now be a large backlash from supporters if he removes Postecoglou. The head coach also retains the full backing of the dressing room, having not only turned many of them into trophy winners but also having helped forge a tight-knit family unit among them.

However, the Tottenham chairman will take into account the dreadful Premier League campaign, around the winter injury crisis, the lack of victories domestically and weigh up whether he believes Postecoglou can take the club on with the Champions League to contend with as well next season.

Postecoglou believes that what he has achieved with the club means there shouldn't even be question marks over his future.

"My gut feeling is I feel right now that I’ve done something that no one believed I could, and I shouldn’t be sitting here talking about [my future]. That’s my feeling, but it is what it is," he said on Sunday. "I just want to go on a break and enjoy my family and reflect on being part of something unbelievably special, unbelievably special.

"I’ve been fortunate to be in this position a number of times, but seeing those scenes Friday and people have reached out and talked to me about how it has affected them what has happened over the last couple of days. It’s a beautiful thing and I just want to enjoy that. To be honest the rest of it? You know I don’t even want to be talking about it. I just think it is unnecessary."

He added: "You’re right to ask the question but you’re asking the person who can’t give you that answer. And I guess, even for you guys, you wouldn’t be asking it if there wasn’t a doubt, right? But I can’t answer it. There is nothing I can say that will answer that question.

"Other people can, so from my perspective, it doesn’t diminish the achievement. Like I said, I am so confident about what we can build at this football club and I want to push on and take it to the next level. We’ll see whether that happens. "

It looks for now though that it will be a little while longer before Postecoglou and the Tottenham fans see what happens.

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has a big decision to make over head coach Ange Postecoglou after a season in which the club finally ended their long trophy drought.

Postecoglou prioritised the Europa League and it paid off with a victory in Bilbao against Manchester United to land the club's first piece of silverware in 17 years and it's first European trophy in 41 years. A huge crowd of 220,000 people gathered in Tottenham on Friday to see an open-topped bus parade as the players brought the trophy to their stadium and then lifted it before them.

However, the poor performances in the Premier League season, with a 17th-place finish and a record 22 defeats as the European campaign was prioritised, has led to speculation over Postecoglou's future at Spurs despite finally becoming the man to win a trophy for the north London club.

Some have pointed to the example of Manchester United keeping Erik ten Hag after the Dutchman won the FA Cup only to dismiss him during the following season and that Levy must heed that.

However, on the latest episode of their podcast Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham, our Spurs reporters Alasdair Gold and Rob Guest discuss why that's currently a flawed argument because Ruben Amorim came in and has thus far fared worse than his predecessor.

Mathys Tel has now played the final game of his Tottenham loan spell. Joining from Bayern Munich at the end of the January transfer window, the Frenchman featured regularly for Ange Postecoglou and scored three goals in his 20 appearances.

The 20-year-old also departs with a Europa League winners' medal around his neck after Tottenham's triumph against Manchester United in Bilbao last Wednesday. Tel did not feature in the final but he more than played his part in the knockout phase to help Tottenham reach the showpiece finale.

As part of Tottenham's loan agreement with Bayern Munich, they can sign the highly-rated attacker on a permanent option for £45.7million with a six-year contract agreed. The north London club now need to decide if they buy Tel for the aforementioned figure, try negotiate a reduced transfer fee or elect against buying him permanently.

The ex-Rennes man settled in N17 extremely well and it is clear to see that the club has left a big mark on him. Speaking to SPURSPLAY following the final game of the season at home to Brighton & Hove Albion, he said: "Tottenham is a big family with the fans, with everybody else. Tottenham is not just a club, it is everything for us. We have to keep going and win more trophies."

His "Tottenham is not just a club, it is everything for us" comment highlights how he feels about the football club and it may well have dropped a hint over his intentions come the summer, as does his "we have to keep going" claim. Tottenham now need to signal their own intentions by buying him permanently or not.

On Tottenham's trophy success and the subsequent celebrations, Tel said: "It was incredible. It was crazy for the club, for the fans, for everybody else. I am very happy about it, we did it, we deserve it."

He added: "To be honest, I am playing football to win trophies so I believe in this team, in this club, and that is why we did it. I am very happy."

Tel's long-term Tottenham future may well hinge on what happens with Postecoglou amid plenty of speculation about what comes next for the Australian. Speaking on the eve of Tottenham's final game of the season against Brighton, football.london asked the head coach in his pre-match press conference if he wanted to keep Tel at the club next season.

"I guess they're the kind of discussions that we start to need to have," said the 59-year-old. "But again, without myself gate-crashing meetings, I need to be invited to them, but we'll assess all those things.

"Matty's done really well for us. We put him in a real difficult position in that as a young player who hadn't played a lot, probably wasn't fit enough, we just threw him straight in but he's handled it really well.

"I think he's been a real important contributor for us and he'll definitely play tomorrow at some point whether he starts or come off the bench. I'm sure those decisions we'll kind of look into post-season."

Archie Gray has paid an emotional tribute to Ben Davies after the long-serving Tottenham defender finally got his hands on silverware. Joining from Swansea City 11 years ago, the Welshman had come close to winning a trophy with Spurs on a couple of occasions but unfortunately it always managed to allude him.

That was until last Wednesday, however, when Ange Postecoglou's men beat Manchester United in the Europa League final. Davies did not feature in the game but he had a big part to play in the team's journey to Bilbao after helping the Lilywhites advance through the league phase and knockout rounds.

Tottenham's No.33 has become a key figure in Gray's development since his move to N17 from Leeds United last summer. Davies' family have also played a huge role in helping the youngster settle into his new surroundings and Gray believes he "probably would have struggled a little bit" both on and off the pitch if it wasn't for his teammate.

"Ben deserves every moment of this and more," the teenager told SPURSPLAY following Tottenham's 4-1 defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion. "Him, his whole family, they're incredible people, not just him. His whole family has taken me under their wing. They've really helped me this year.

"If he wasn't here, I probably would have struggled a little bit off the pitch, on the pitch. I can't say enough words about him. He's been here for me the whole year. I wouldn't have been able to do what I've been able to do so far this year without him.

"For him, this moment, he deserves it 10 times over. What a player. The things he's done for this club is incredible and he'll continue to do it as well. He's a great professional and a great guy as well."

It has been an incredible first season for Gray at Tottenham after making 46 appearances and collecting a Europa League winners' medal in the process. Rather than keep the medal in his possession, the Durham-born ace instead intends to leave it at his family home in order to inspire his younger brothers.

"I'm not sure. I think I might give it to my little brothers at home, so they can look up to it a little bit," he revealed. "Hopefully it will make them work a bit harder."

Gray will now have the chance to play Champions League football during the 2025/26 campaign. It's something he just can't wait for.

"Yeah, it's incredible to say," he said. "Like everyone, it's a childhood dream to play in the Champions League. Hopefully I can do that next year. I can't wait."

Ange Postecoglou achieved something this week that only two other men at Tottenham Hotspur have done, but it is also his struggles that draw some remarkable parallels at the club.

The Australian led Spurs to victory in the Europa League final against Manchester United on Wednesday night in Bilbao to bring the north London club their first trophy in 17 years and their first European triumph in 41 years. The streets of Tottenham were packed with around 220,000 people on Friday as the team took the trophy on an open-top bus parade through N17 before lifting it in front of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Postecoglou and his players gave the Tottenham fans something they will remember but they also served up a dreadful Premier League season, finishing 17th in the table through a mixture of injuries, poor performances and the head coach claiming that he switched priority to the Europa League after the January transfer window.

Spurs ended up with only 38 points from their 38 matches with 22 defeats, the worst tally in the club's history in a league season. There is a strange quirk, though, that only two managers at the north London club have had worse seasons in the league since 1958 and they are the most prominent ones.

The two coaches are Bill Nicholson and Keith Burkinshaw, who are also the only other two managers in Tottenham's history to win European trophies. In the 1958/59 season under Nicholson, Spurs finished 18th in his first campaign with 36 points from 42 matches with 19 defeats, and in 1977 Tottenham ended up 22nd, losing 21 games under Burkinshaw in his first year in charge and were relegated.

If Spurs fans want to draw any parallels then they will be hoping Postecoglou is given a chance to push on like those two men did. Nicholson famously went on to lead Tottenham to become the first English team to win the double in the 20th century and then the first British side to win a European trophy with the Cup Winners' Cup in 1963. He also won three FA Cups, two League Cups and a UEFA Cup in a remarkable 16-year spell at the club.

Burkinshaw bounced back himself with promotion the next season and went on to win two FA Cups and the UEFA Cup.

Postecoglou has already won more than those two men did by the time their second season ended and if given the chance the Australian will want to continue to leave his own mark on the club's history books.

Fulham boss Marco Silva has confirmed he has no plans to leave the club amid links to taking over from Ange Postecoglou at Tottenham.

The 47-year-old, Andoni Iraola, Oliver Glasner and Thomas Frank are just a few Premier League managers of interest to Spurs. Because of their dreadful domestic campaign, Postecoglou looked destined to be sacked but last Wednesday, he helped the club to their first trophy in 17 years.

Postecoglou certainly expects to remain in charge for a third season with the 59-year-old making a bold statement during the club's Europa League victory parade that the upcoming campaign will be better than the one that has just concluded.

Nonetheless, Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy still faces a hugely significant decision, but even if does choose to keep Postecoglou at the club, groundwork has been done on potential replacements.

Silva was one of those looked at but a mid-season departure from Craven Cottage looks highly unlikely with Silva, who recently turned down an approach from Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal, bullish on his future.

“I’m not here to talk about speculation,” he recently admitted. "Speculation is always there. If the football club where you are and the players perform well, it’s normal they are going to speak about the manager and about the players.

“That is not something that I can control. And if I can’t control it I don’t lose any time talking about it and waste energy doing that.”

Pushed further on whether he will still be at the club, Silva replied: “I am under contract with the club and of course I’ve been planning with the board (for) next season.

“Everything on track and the plan is there. We have the next two months to prepare for the season as best we can. If I’m under contract with the club and if I’m planning with the club the next season, of course I expect to be here.”

Tottenham fans will have to wait another three months to discover their 2025/26 Champions League opponents. Spurs may have finished the Premier League season in 17th position but they take a seat at Europe's top table after their Europa League final success.

Winning the Europa League does always guarantee a Champions League berth for the following season, although many have been quite vocal about that in the build up to the final due to Tottenham and Manchester United's Premier League struggles. Amid that debate, Spurs are back in UEFA's premier competition after last taking part in the Champions League during the 2022/23 season when Antonio Conte was head coach.

Tottenham will be joined in the Champions League by fellow English sides Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea and Newcastle United. Their league phase fixtures will all become clear when the draw is made on Thursday, August 28.

As things stand right now, 29 teams have already guaranteed themselves a place in the league phase of the competition. The final seven places will be determined by who progresses through the qualifying rounds.

Now that Europe's top leagues have come to a close, Pot 1 for the Champions League draw is already finalised (via ESPN). Real Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, PSG, Inter Milan, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund and Barcelona are the nine teams in Pot 1.

Due to the new format of UEFA's club competitions, teams from the same pot are not prevented from playing each other. All teams will be drawn against two sides from each of the four pots, thus determining their eight league fixtures.

Teams cannot play sides from their own domestic league in the league phase of the competition, meaning Tottenham cannot be paired against Manchester City, Liverpool or Chelsea. Spurs will instead play two of Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, PSG, Inter Milan, Borussia Dortmund and Barcelona from Pot 1, one of which being a home fixture and the other away.

In Pot 2, Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen, Atletico Madrid, Atalanta, Villarreal, Juventus and Eintracht Frankfurt will all feature. Benfica, Club Brugge, Rangers and Shakhtar Donetsk are other possible options in Pot 2 providing they come through qualifying.

Tottenham look set to be in Pot 3 for August's draw. However, they may find themselves moving up a pot if one of or both Club Brugge or Benfica do not qualify for the league phase.

Here are how the 2025/26 Champions League pots:

Pot 1: Real Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, PSG, Inter Milan, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona.

Pot 2: Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen, Atletico Madrid, Atalanta, Villarreal, Juventus, Eintracht Frankfurt, Benfica (dependent on qualifying), Club Brugge (dependent on qualifying), Rangers (dependent on qualifying), Shakhtar Donetsk (dependent on qualifying).

Pot 2/3: Tottenham, PSV.

Pot 3: Ajax, Napoli, Sporting CP, Olympiacos, Slavia Prague, Marseille.