From Europa League glory to the relegation zone: how did Tottenham get here?
There is no gentle way to frame what has happened to Tottenham Hotspur. Nine months ago they were celebrating a Europa League triumph, their first European trophy since 1984 and their first major silverware in 17 years. Today they sit 16th in the Premier League, one point above the relegation zone, with their third head coach of the season on the touchline and no clear route out of the mess.
Three managers in nine months
The timeline tells the story. Ange Postecoglou won the Europa League in May 2025 and was sacked in early June. The logic, if you could call it that, was that his league form had been too poor. Thomas Frank arrived from Brentford on June 12, signed a three-year deal, and lasted eight months. He won two of his last 17 league matches before the board pulled the trigger on February 11, with Spurs in 16th and five points above the drop zone.
Igor Tudor stepped in as interim boss on February 13 and promptly lost his first four matches. His first point came on March 15 with a 1-1 draw at Anfield, Richarlison's 90th-minute equaliser cancelling out Dominik Szoboszlai's 18th-minute free kick. Tudor celebrated like it was a cup final. That is where Tottenham are now.
The numbers paint a grim picture
Played 30, won seven, drawn nine, lost 14. Thirty points. A goal difference of minus seven. Nottingham Forest and West Ham sit directly below them on 29 points each. Burnley are further adrift on 20 and Wolves on 16, but the gap between 16th and 18th is a single point. Spurs have not won a league match since the start of January, a run of 12 games without a victory that stretches back 91 years in terms of club records.
The Europa League papered over deeper problems
The question everyone keeps asking is how a squad that won a European trophy can be anywhere near relegation. Part of the answer is that the Europa League run papered over deep cracks. Postecoglou's side were inconsistent in the league even during that cup campaign, and the board's decision to sack a trophy-winning manager sent a signal that the people running the club did not have a coherent plan.
Frank's appointment looked sensible on paper. He had built Brentford into a stable Premier League outfit and was known for getting the best out of limited squads. But the Tottenham job broke the pattern. The squad's confidence was already fragile after Postecoglou's departure, and Frank could not find a system that worked. Results drifted, the atmosphere at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium turned hostile, and by February the situation was unsalvageable.
Tudor and the fight for survival
Tudor brings intensity and aggression, which is exactly what a relegation fight demands. But he inherited a group of players who have been coached three different ways this season, and the draw at Liverpool might turn out to be a false dawn. The next match, at home to Nottingham Forest on March 22, is a direct clash with a team sitting one point below them.
What makes this situation so damaging for Tottenham is the financial implication. Relegation would cost the club hundreds of millions in lost broadcasting revenue and would trigger player exits that could take years to recover from. The idea of Spurs in the Championship sounds absurd, but stranger things have happened to clubs who burned through managers and ran out of time to fix the damage.
The board has questions to answer
Sacking Postecoglou after a trophy win was a decision that needs to look right eventually, and right now it looks catastrophic. The January window passed without significant reinforcements. The coaching staff has been reshuffled twice. The players look like they have stopped believing in the project.
There are still eight matches left. Tottenham's upcoming fixtures include a home clash with Forest, trips to Sunderland and Wolves, and home games against Brighton and Bournemouth. There are points available, but this squad has won seven times all season and has gone 12 league matches without a win.
Tottenham could still survive. They probably will. But the fact that survival is even a conversation tells you everything about how badly this season has gone wrong.
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