Planet Football

When the sheer horror and despair of 2026 sends you seeking comfort in lovely Dele goals from the good old days, the obvious first port of call will always be his Crystal Palace masterpiece.

It remains a flawless example of the essence of Dele. Of the impish and impudent brilliance that made him, for a short but dazzling period, among the most exciting young footballers on the planet.

There’s a balletic quality as in three touches but one fluid rotational movement controls the ball, flicks it over his head and then sticks it in the bottom corner.

Lovely, soothing, comforting stuff.

But for me it will only ever be good enough for second place. There is another goal. An even better goal in a bigger London derby.

Eight years ago (sob) today, Dele scored twice in a 3-1 Spurs win at Chelsea. Beating Chelsea is not something Spurs generally do a lot of. And especially not at Stamford Bridge.

Dele, though, was a man who could make things possible. Chelsea were among his favourite opponents and all five of his Premier League goals against them for Spurs came in victories. There was another famous brace at White Hart Lane a year before that brought the long unbeaten run of the eventual champions to an end.

The Chelsea of the following season were… not that Chelsea. Antonio Conte was in the process of his destroy and exit – albeit one that would deliver FA Cup success at the end of a season riddled with huffing and acrimony.

They were long out of the title picture by the time Spurs rocked up on Easter weekend. So was everyone else, to be fair, for this was the start of the Premier League’s Guardiola Years. His City side were on their way to a hundred points and over a hundred goals and an eventual title-winning margin of 19 points.

Spurs and Chelsea and the rest were reduced to battling it out for Champions League places. Alvaro Morata headed Chelsea into a 30th-minute lead after some Hugo Lloris flapping, but those who only know what Spurs are like now might be shocked to learn that there was a time when that falling a goal behind didn’t mean they would automatically go on to lose heavily and have to sack another manager.

No, back then Spurs were very capable of bouncing back. And bounce they did. Christian Eriksen bamboozled Willy Caballero with a knuckleball that dipped and fizzed and found its way into the middle of the goal with the keeper reduced to the status of a hologram. Level at the break.

The second half belonged to Dele. His second, points-clinching goal was a scruffy affair – albeit one that still featured his trademark quick feet and quicker thinking to manufacture and exploit a tiny oasis of space and calm in a penalty box of chaos.

But his first goal? Ah, now that was a thing. One of the striking things about that Palace goal is the fluidity of Dele’s movements throughout the mechanics of it, but this goal is really an even better example. Because this one came not from perfectly fluid motion in one spot but combined it with running at full tilt.

His two touches without breaking stride as he ran between Chelsea’s centre-halves to first bring down Eric Dier’s long pass from defence and then clip it past Caballero and in off the post were flawless. Both were vastly more complicated and difficult than Dele made them look.

Like the Palace goal, that apparent ease was deceptive. We know now just how much Dele struggled for his art. But art it was to watch him in those times, and in those moments where nothing else mattered and he turned Premier League matches into his own personal kickabout.

Ah, Spurs fans, do you remember when football could just be fun? Wasn’t it great.

But it doesn’t end there. The artistry of Dele’s goal is one thing, that of the celebration quite another. Just look at it. It’s like a renaissance painting. Dele, mischievous grin on his face like he’s just mugged off a couple of mates in the weekly five-a-side down at Power League, cupping his ear as the Chelsea fans turn every shade of fury in the background.

We can see the various hand gestures with which they congratulate Dele on his goal and celebrate their good fortune at being able to witness such splendour in person, but alas we can only imagine what words of wisdom accompanied them.

It was Tottenham’s first win at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League era. And, since they’d achieved all of their goals in one game, there has been no need for a second.

READ NEXT: Who will stay or go if Spurs are actually relegated to the Championship?

Roberto De Zerbi appears set to be appointed Tottenham‘s manager, but is he the right man for the job?

The Italian’s possession-oriented attacking approach earned plenty of plaudits during his time at Brighton and Marseille, but what about his volatile personality? Will his exacting tactical demands gel well with the players? What will a De Zerbi Tottenham team look like?

Here’s our best guess at how Tottenham will line up in De Zerbi’s favoured 4-2-3-1 formation for the remainder of their relegation dogfight:

GK: Guglielmo Vicario

The last guy made the blunder of bowing to pressure and dropping the Italian for a big match.

*Mick McCarthy voice* That went well.

De Zerbi will likely have to call upon a hopefully-not-too-bruised Antonin Kinsky in his first couple of games after Vicario underwent surgery on a hernia.

But it was scheduled “to have as minimal an impact on our season as possible” and it’s expected that Vicario will be back for most of the run-in.

Still, if Kinsky can put his Atletico nightmare behind him and showcase his ability to play out from the back, then De Zerbi might just keep the faith.

RB: Pedro Porro

Using Porro further forward actually worked quite well in Tudor’s only win, albeit an ultimately meaningless one over Atletico Madrid.

That remains an option amid an ongoing injury crisis in the attacking areas, but we expect him to return to his natural role going forward.

Djed Spence might have something to say about that, though. The England hopeful is arguably a bit more suited to the modern inverted style favoured by the Italian. A solid alternative, at least.

CB: Cristian Romero

The club captain went well over a month without playing a Premier League game following a suspension and concussion absence.

But Spurs’ 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest shows that the club’s issues go beyond personnel and availability. His long-awaited return brought no quick fix.

Still, he’s undoubtedly among the first names on the teamsheet. A quality defender in the right system. Whether he remains available for De Zerbi in the long term remains an open question, though.

CB: Micky van de Ven

Tottenham actually looked okay with Van de Ven at left-back in the first half against Nottingham Forest.

Tudor overcorrected after going to a set-piece goal by hooking the Netherlands international at the break, at which point Spurs capitulated in his absence.

De Zerbi is famously idiosyncratic and might surprise us with one or two selections, but building his team around the bedrock that delivered last season’s Europa League trophy seems like an absolute no-brainer for the task at hand.

LB: Destiny Udogie

Udogie has been eased back into action with minutes here and there.

He’s only made eight league starts this season, while three bookings in his last three appearances have demonstrated he’s a bit rusty.

Being left out of Italy’s World Cup play-off qualifiers might be for the best. If Udogie can stay injury-free and regain his sharpness, his pace and energy will be a major asset in De Zerbi’s high defensive line.

DM: Archie Gray

After slotting in admirably at right-back at boyhood club Leeds, he’s spent his first couple of seasons with Tottenham doing a jack-of-all-trades job as a utility man all over the pitch.

Tottenham’s best player in their recent rut, Gray has finally had a chance what he can do in his favoured midfield role, where his long-term future undoubtedly lies.

De Zerbi has older, more experienced heads to call upon but few of them offer as much in possession as the 20-year-old.

DM: Rodrigo Bentancur

De Zerbi is the kind of brave, uncompromising coach who’d put Lucas Bergvall in alongside Gray.

We’d love to see it, and it’d certainly make a refreshing change from the stodgy Bentancur-Palhinha partnership that struggled badly to progress the ball and defined Thomas Frank’s uninspiring early months.

But that midfield engine room would be collectively younger than Luka Modric. It might well be Spurs’ midfield of the future, but leaning so heavily on youth and potential would be a bold (stupid) approach in the midst of an almighty relegation scrap.

At least until the end of the season, we can see De Zerbi utilising the experience of a seasoned Uruguay international. The balance might just work.

FWR: Mohammed Kudus

Another player reportedly on the cusp of a timely return from injury, Kudus looks set to offer De Zerbi something that Tudor, and Frank in his final months, were crying out for: dynamism.

All too often of late, Tottenham’s attack has looked static, one-dimensional and predictable.

Kudus’ exceptional dribbling and explosive pace adds another string to De Zerbi’s bow. Kaoru Mitoma was often the difference-maker for De Zerbi’s Brighton and we could see the Ghanaian fulfilling a similarly important role here. With their fixtures, they’ll need it.

CAM: Xavi Simons

The highly-rated Netherlands international was superb, by far Tottenham’s best player, in their Champions League victory over Atletico Madrid.

So it was baffling, to say the least, to see him back on the bench for the crunch match against Nottingham Forest. That call, like most of Tudor’s calls, backfired.

Admittedly, Simons doesn’t strike us as the ideal candidate for a relegation dogfight, be it his physicality or his temperament, but his creativity and quality are sorely missed when he’s absent.

The entire De Zerbi project might hinge on building a system that works with Simons in it. At least while Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison are (presumably) sidelined for the run-in.

FWL: Mathys Tel

Positives have been hard to come by in recent weeks. Gray’s form is top of the list.

Then it’s Tel just starting to show why Spurs bought him, with decent performances against Liverpool and Atletico Madrid. We’re not sure we can think of a third bullet point.

It looked like just Spurs’ luck, then, when the 20-year-old forward hobbled off against Nottingham Forest.

But it’s not thought to be a bad injury, and the suggestions are that he’ll be available for their next outing away to Sunderland.

Tel might be severely lacking when it comes to numbers, but his bright performances of late ought to have earned him a sustained run of starts. Particularly when the competition is so lacking.

ST: Richarlison

Tudor went with a Dominic Solanke-Richarlison strike partnership in his final two league matches, an approach that bore mixed results.

There’s two decent options there, but we expect De Zerbi to choose one or the other as the spearhead of his 4-2-3-1. Solanke might well be Tottenham’s medium-term No.9. We could see Richarlison leaving this summer.

But for now the Brazilian seems to be one of the few players in the Spurs squad built for a relegation scrap. He’s been there before with Everton and his goal against Liverpool is evidence that he won’t shirk the fight.

READ NEXT: Who will stay or go if Spurs are actually relegated to the Championship?

The prospect of Tottenham being in the Championship has gone from ‘unlikely’ to ‘this could actually happen’ and has all of us wondering what will actually take place if a ‘big 6’ club goes down.

Along with the huge drop in finances, there will likely be a fire sale as players who think they are too good for the Championship – although have not shown that this year – will look for a way out. But of the entire squad, who will stay and who will go?

Here’s what we reckon will happen with every member of the current Tottenham squad should Spurs go down.

Guglielmo Vicario – Go

Of all the Spurs players to have had a drop off this season, Vicario’s has been the most notable with the Italian going from one of the best keepers in the league to someone who seemingly can’t even hold a ball.

He’s on a reported £75k, but even if that was halved that would be a lot for an underwhelming keeper in the second tier so a departure seems likely.

Antonin Kinsky – Stay

There’s being out in the shop window and then there’s whatever that was with Kinsky in Madrid.

His 15-minute nightmare is unlikely to have attracted many suitors which means he may well stick around given he is only 23. Spurs will likely recruit another keeper but if given the chance, Kinsky could rebuild his currently tattered reputation.

Brandon Austin – Stay

Third keeper Brandon Austin has played just one league game for Spurs since 2019, so clearly isn’t too fussed about first-team football. He’ll stick around.

Pedro Porro – Go

Once thought of as one of the top full backs in Europe, Porro’s decline has been rapid this year.

The nature of football though means sometimes players can turn it around and Porro has been linked with a move back to Manchester City.

Whether that comes off or not remains to be seen but a move away seems likely.

Radu Dragusin – Stay

Spurs paid £21.5m for Dragusin but it is hard to see exactly what they paid for.

The Romanian has looked woefully out of his depth on many occasions this year and even if Spurs do want to get rid, who would want to buy him?

He is pocketing a reported £85k a week and even if that was halved due to relegation, is anyone likely to offer him something similar? He has a contract until 2030 and may well choose to pick up that pay cheque.

Kevin Danso – Stay

Danso hasn’t actually looked too bad since arriving in January 2025 and has become Spurs’ long-throw taker, an incredibly important role.

Having him stay would be a plus for Spurs as he would easily be one of the best centre backs in the Championship but it may take some convincing considering he is 27 now and will want to play at the top level.

Cristian Romero – Go

The season is not even over and it looks like club captain Cristian Romero already has one foot out the door.

Marca reported this week that he has a release clause in his contract that will allow him to leave for one of three clubs – Real Madrid, Atletico or Barcelona.

That fact coming from a Spanish newspaper seems dubious but if it is true, one of those would need to stump up €60m.

Even if it isn’t true, he looks certain to leave and is the joint top earner at the club.

Ben Davies – Stay

A drop down the pyramid may well come at a good time for the now 32-year-old Davies.

His contract expires in the summer but Spurs could do worse than offering him another year for some leadership within the presumably much changed dressing room.

Micky van de Ven – Go

Another one flirting with the departure door is Romero’s centre-back partner Van de Ven.

The 24-year-old has been pining for a move away, particularly to one of the La Liga clubs, but his performances on the pitch haven’t exactly started a bidding war.

He is on slightly less than Romero at £90k a week but also looks certain to leave regardless of if Spurs stay up or not.

Ashley Phillips – Stay

Centre back Phillips is only 19, so seems likely to stay.

Destiny Udogie – Go

Juventus have been said to be sniffing round Udogie and are hoping Spurs go down so they can get a cut-rate price for the Italian.

Injury issues may put off some suitors but he is another one that likely sees himself too good for the second tier.

Djed Spence – Go

It was not long ago that Spence was fighting for a starting spot in the England team and yet it is now a question as to whether he will even be at the World Cup.

He has made Thomas Tuchel’s inflated 35-man squad for the upcoming friendlies but he has been some way off it this year and may want a move to restart his career.

Souza – Stay

Souza only joined Spurs in January and is 19 so unless he kicks up a fuss, he seems likely to stay.

Joao Palhinha – Go

Palhinha is only on loan and while he showed promise at the start, he too has crumbled under the pressure of a club falling down the table.

Spurs have an option to sign him permanently in the summer but he seems unlikely either club or player would want that.

Yves Bissouma – Go

Thomas Frank had much publicised problems with the discipline of Yves Bissouma and a player who can’t be trusted is not someone you want to pin your hopes on in the often soul-crushing endurance test that is the Championship.

His contract also expires in the summer so he will most likely leave.

Archie Gray – Stay

If there was one player the Spurs hierarchy could pick to stay next year, chances are it would be Archie Gray.

He is the one player who will come away this year with any kind of credit, as he has done a job all over the pitch.

He’s only 20 but seems a Premier League quality player already, and will have plenty of suitors. He does, though, seem the kind of player who would help Spurs back up if they do drop down.

Rodrigo Bentancur – Go

One of the better players in this underwhelming Spurs side, which means his departure would be likely.

A return to Italy would seem most plausible with his contract ending this summer.

Callum Olusesi – Stay

Only 19 so likely to stick around.

James Maddison – Go

Maddison’s absence has been keenly felt this year but it seems unlikely he would stick around in the Championship.

He’s 29 now and while there will be concern over his return from a cruciate ligament injury, he is good enough for at least one Premier League club to have a punt. Perhaps someone like Newcastle.

Lucas Bergvall – Stay

With a contract until 2031, Spurs do have a bit of power in the future for Bergvall provided there is no relegation release clause in there.

He has been linked with United but Spurs should fight hard to keep him there with the promise of a quick return to the top flight.

Dejan Kulusevski – Go

One player that has been sorely missed, Kulusevski fits neatly into the category of too good for the second division so will most likely leave.

A return to Italy could be on the cards but do not rule out another Premier League side taking a punt on the Swede.

Conor Gallagher – Go

Spurs only signed Gallagher in January which means they will most likely have to eat a big loss for a player who sees himself as better than the Championship.

A move to a mid-table Premier League club looks likely.

Pape Matar Sarr – Stay

Only 23 so perhaps young enough that Spurs can convince him to stay and he looks a level below Premier League quality at the moment.

Xavi Simons – Go

Bought in as an Eberechi Eze alternative, Simons has become the face of this floundering Spurs side.

He has registered just five goal involvements in 25 league matches and has been uninspiring since moving to north London.

With a reported inflated entourage it seems likely he would kick up a fuss and force a move. How much Spurs get back of the £51.8m they paid for him remains to be seen.

Mohammed Kudus – Go

Kudus had a bright start when he made the move across London but his form faltered in October and then into November.

A purple patch in December was followed by a muscle injury in January which has kept him on the sidelines but he, and his agents most likely, will be looking for a move should Spurs go down.

Wilson Odobert – Stay

Odobert is only 21 so seems likely to stay.

READ: Ranking 5 available managers who’d keep Tottenham up if Tudor gets sacked

Mathys Tel – Stay

Tel didn’t get much of a look in under Frank but has featured more since the Dane’s sacking.

In that time he hasn’t looked great but there are some signs of a player in there. A year scoring goals in the Championship may boost his confidence ahead of a return to the Premier League.

Richarlison – Go

Richarlison has been around long enough that it seems unbelievable that he is still only 28 and yet he is the one leading any hope of a Spurs survival fight.

Should he, and the club, fail in that, it seems likely he will leave.

Dominic Solanke – Stay

It seems an awfully long time since Spurs forked out £55m for Solanke doesn’t it?

Injuries have disrupted the trajectory of the now 28-year-old and that kind of medical history may make others think twice about signing him.

He has featured 12 times this year and just 62 times since August 2024 so may have to stick around next season.

Randal Kolo Muani – Go

Kolo Muani is only on loan from PSG so will likely return at the end of the year.

James Wilson – Stay

Wilson is a 19-year-old prospect so will likely stay.

READ NEXT: Who has the easiest run-in of Tottenham, West Ham, Nottm Forest & Leeds?

The threat of relegation has grown larger for Tottenham after their 3-0 loss to Nottingham Forest, leaving Igor Tudor’s side 17th in the Premier League table.

Thanks only to West Ham losing to Aston Villa at the same time, Tottenham remain outside the bottom three, but only by a point. There were already doubts about whether Tudor was the right man to lead Spurs away from the relegation mire when he was appointed as their caretaker manager for the rest of the season, but his failure to win any of his five league games in charge so far have only served to amplify those concerns.

If they are to stay up, Spurs might genuinely have to change their manager again. But they are going to struggle to convince the calibre of manager they would want.

With that in mind, axing Tudor for a different caretaker manager, rather than a permanent replacement, may have to be the way to go. Finding one with experience of English football may give them a better chance.

But who would give Spurs the best chance possible of avoiding disaster and staying up? We rank some of the potential candidates to replace Tudor by who’d be most likely to keep them in the Premier League.

Mason became Spurs’ go-to man in rocky waters when they sacked Jose Mourinho in 2021 and Cristian Stellini – another ill-fated caretaker manager who didn’t last long after Antonio Conte’s exit – in 2023.

Mason’s underwhelming spell at West Brom earlier this season has cast doubt on his managerial potential, but he knows the Spurs environment well.

However, he would be inheriting a different kind of challenge if he returned to Tottenham now. They were seventh when he replaced Mourinho and fifth when he succeeded Stellini.

Those appointments were made with the sense of Spurs having little left to lose. Now they do have something serious to lose: top-flight status for the first time since the 1970s.

A Spurs player of more than 300 appearances between 1979 and 1990, Hughton had some spells as their caretaker manager in the late 90s, winning four of the 11 matches he oversaw.

He later became a Premier League manager with Newcastle, Norwich and Brighton. His experience with the latter, whom he led from the Championship to the top flight, would be the most appropriate background for what he would be taking on if he returned to Spurs.

Hughton kept Brighton in the Premier League for two seasons before being sacked as they sought a more adventurous style of play. It provided the platform for them to progress into the established top-flight club they now are.

After some time working with the Ghana national team, Hughton hasn’t managed at club level since his spell in the Championship with Nottingham Forest ended in 2021.

The Premier League – and what it takes to stay in it – has changed since Hughton was last at the helm of one of its clubs, but his connection with Spurs could become something to lean on.

Klinsmann enjoyed two spells as a Spurs striker in the 90s, scoring 38 goals from 68 games for the club.

Most of his subsequent experience as a manager has been with national teams – Germany, the USA and South Korea – but he has spent time in charge of Bayern Munich and Hertha Berlin before.

He recently threw his hat into the ring if Spurs need to replace Tudor, stating: “Who wouldn’t want the job? It is Tottenham.

“Whoever you choose, you need a person who can connect to everyone emotionally, that knows the club, that feels the club, that feels the people.

“Because, to get out of this mess, they need to develop a fighting spirit, a really nasty, ugly, fighting spirit and that goes only over the emotions.”

If that’s what Klinsmann could instil for Spurs, then it sounds like what they need. But actions speak louder than words, and the actions of their players haven’t fit the bill this year.

Postecoglou wouldn’t be drawn on the prospect of returning to Spurs when asked recently. It would certainly be an embarrassing U-turn for the club he led to the Europa League trophy last season.

Finishing 17th in the Premier League was what cost him his job, but it would be enough for what Tottenham need now.

The added benefit of reverting to Postecoglou would be his prior understanding of most of their players. In theory, he wouldn’t need much time – which is firmly not on Spurs’ side – to get his ideas back into their heads.

Increasingly becoming one of the favourites to take over from Tudor, Dyche getting a chance with Tottenham would be fascinating.

The potential to get revenge on Forest, who sacked him earlier in the season, in the relegation battle would be an enticing subplot.

During his spell in charge of Burnley, Dyche earned plenty of praise for keeping his side resilient against the threat of relegation, even if he didn’t always succeed in keeping them up.

At his best – which may be behind him after his spells with Everton and Forest – Dyche was a master of getting the basics right for struggling sides.

Some pundits wondered what he’d be capable of achieving at a bigger club. They probably didn’t mean in these circumstances, but now could be the time.

Tottenham have lost more Premier League home games than Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool combined since they moved into the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2019.

The state-of-the-art new ground has been praised for its facilities, but it’s been a struggle for Spurs to make it a difficult place for the opposition to go.

Jose Mourinho praised Tottenham’s stadium as “the best in the world” after he took over while the club were still getting used to their new home. But it wouldn’t be long before games were being played behind closed doors due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“I think so,” Mourinho responded when asked if the new stadium can become a fortress.

“But we need to do it with the fans. Without them you can create a kind of fortress, but based on the tactical side of the game.

“But, I think with fans, you can do it in a much stronger way because you add the emotional side of the game that only your fans in your stadium can give to you.”

That didn’t quite come to pass, although they weren’t shockingly poor in their first full season with the stadium packed out – the 2021-22 campaign in which Antonio Conte led them to a top-four finish ahead of their north London rivals Arsenal.

Spurs won 13 of their 19 league outings on their own patch that season and boasted a better home record than the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United.

What they’d give for a record like that now, with their dismal record at home one of the key reasons for being mired in the relegation battle this season.

After beating Burnley on the opening weekend, Spurs have won just one of their last 15 outings at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. They have the worst home record in the entire division, having picked up even fewer points on their own soil than Championship-bound Wolves and Burnley.

“We would like our home to be a fortress,” Thomas Frank discussed back in October.

“Can we make our home an unbelievably difficult place to come to? Then the job is half done in terms of what you like to try to achieve. And that is like an unbelievable cohesion between the team and the fans.

“It cannot only be the team, it cannot only be the fans. It needs to be both. We need to bring energy to each other. We need to work unbelievably hard, perform well, try to be positive – but also need a little bit of help.

“Every game goes a little bit up and down. You have good spells, bad spells. We need the fans, especially in the tough moments. The better they can be behind the team, the better it will be.”

Unfortunately for Frank, he never got his wish. Spurs’ home form never picked up, and the Dane was sacked, while his successor Igor Tudor has failed to turn things around. The interim has overseen defeats to Arsenal, Crystal Palace and now relegation rivals Nottingham Forest at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Here’s the breakdown of the Premier League home table since Tottenham moved to their new stadium.

Note: to create this table, we’ve used our sister site Football365 and their brilliant Premier League Tables resource – a goldmine for creating and exploring custom tables.

READ NEXT: Ranking five misfits who’d still take the Tottenham job as Tudor sack grows inevitable

It may well be a last throw of the dice for Igor Tudor as Tottenham take on Liverpool on Sunday, desperate to find a way to halt the longest losing streak in their history.

Tudor has lost all four of his games in charge of Tottenham so far, picking a different lineup each time. That makes predicting his next Spurs XI (could it be his last?) a bit tricky – but we’re going to try.

A trip to Anfield awaits Spurs on Sunday as attention switches back to the Premier League after the debacle of their 5-2 loss to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Tottenham’s list of absentees isn’t helpful. Micky van de Ven is suspended, while the injury list includes Ben Davies, Lucas Bergvall, Mohammed Kudus, Rodrigo Bentancur, Wilson Odobert, James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski.

Destiny Udogie could be on the verge of a comeback, while Spurs will have to assess Cristian Romero and Joao Palhinha after their clash of heads on Tuesday that forced them both off.

So what starting XI will Tudor scramble together to take on another English side who lost in midweek and have a manager under scrutiny – just not on the same full-blown crisis scale?

Here’s a quick reminder of the four different lineups Tudor has started with so far:

v Arsenal (3-5-2): Vicario; Palhinha, Dragusin, Van de Ven; Gray, Bissouma, Gallagher, Sarr, Spence; Kolo Muani, Simons

v Fulham (4-3-3): Vicario; Porro, Dragusin, Van de Ven, Gray; Gallagher, Palhinha, Bissouma; Kolo Muani, Solanke, Simons

v Palace (3-4-3): Vicario; Porro, Danso, Van de Ven; Gray, Palhinha, Sarr, Souza; Kolo Muani, Solanke, Tel

v Atleti (3-4-3): Kinsky; Danso, Romero, Van de Ven; Porro, Gray, Sarr, Spence; Kolo Muani, Richarlison, Tel

And here’s how we think/guess Tottenham will set up on Sunday, in a 3-5-2 shape…

GK: Guglielmo Vicario

Tudor simply has to revert to starting Vicario after the much-scrutinised decision to switch to Antonin Kinsky – and then take him off after 17 minutes – on Tuesday.

Kinsky struggled on his Champions League debut, so the fair thing to do would be to take the 23-year-old out of the spotlight.

Vicario has started all 29 of their Premier League games this season. Whilst he hasn’t entirely convinced in his own right, the Italian will make that 30 on Sunday.

RCB: Kevin Danso

Tudor will have to decide whether to use a back three or back four against Liverpool.

He has gone with a three in all but one of his matches in charge so far, so we’ll assume that’s what he’ll prefer, even though Van de Ven’s absence and the question mark over Romero could put that in doubt.

Danso came into the starting lineup against Palace and completed the full 90 minutes in that game and against Atleti.

Tottenham conceded eight goals in that time, which isn’t a great reflection for their defence, but given their available personnel at the moment, he will likely be a senior option in their backline.

CB: Cristian Romero

Romero may need to be assessed after his head injury, but he didn’t come off as badly from the collision as Palhinha.

The centre-back will likely be able to return to action, which will be important for a Spurs side missing Van de Ven.

Alternatively, if Romero can’t play, Spurs may have to drop Archie Gray into the back three or go with a four instead.

LCB: Radu Dragusin

After starting Tudor’s first two games in charge, Dragusin missed the Palace match and sat on the bench against Atleti.

As long as he’s fit enough, Spurs probably need him to step back into their starting defensive line in Van de Ven’s absence.

RWB: Pedro Porro

Porro has become the only genuine candidate for the right-back role due to Djed Spence shifting over to the left-hand side.

Archie Gray could be an alternative at right-back, but Porro is the more natural fit there and will be expecting to start a fourth game in a row.

CM: Archie Gray

Gray is the only player to have played every single minute under Tudor so far, although that hasn’t all been in the same position.

He’s played at right wing-back, left-back and in his natural position of central midfield.

As mentioned, depending on Romero’s availability, Spurs might need him in some sort of defensive role on Sunday. But if Romero does play – and Palhinha doesn’t – Gray could operate as the holding midfielder.

CM: Pape Sarr

Sarr is one of only four players – along with Gray, Vicario and Van de Ven – to amass more than 300 minutes of gametime under Tudor so far.

However, he will be in a battle with Yves Bissouma – who wasn’t included in their latest Champions League squad list but is in contention this weekend – for a starting berth on Sunday.

CM: Conor Gallagher

Gallagher started Tudor’s first two games in charge before coming off the bench in the two since.

Any question marks over Palhinha’s availability could play into his hands for a chance to return to the starting lineup, when his energy could be crucial to keep Liverpool at bay.

LWB: Djed Spence

Spence was an obvious choice to return to the starting lineup in midweek, since January signing Souza isn’t in Spurs’ Champions League squad list.

Tudor can pick freely between them for Sunday, but the more senior Spence would be the safer choice against a team like Liverpool.

He would presumably be in a direct battle against Mohamed Salah. The fact that Spence is right-footed should help his chances of dealing with whenever Salah cuts inside, but it will still be a tough one-on-one clash.

ST: Randal Kolo Muani

Tudor reunited with Kolo Muani after their time working together at Juventus last season and has chosen him as a starter in all four of his games so far.

The Frenchman scored the first goal of Tudor’s Spurs spell, but hasn’t found the net again since.

It could cost him his place in the starting lineup after being taken off in all four games so far, but if Spurs go with a strike pairing, it may make more sense to stick with him over someone like Xavi Simons.

ST: Richarlison

Richarlison’s appearance against Atleti was his first as a starter under Tudor, but the former Everton forward has a good record against his old rivals Liverpool.

From 15 appearances against them in the Premier League, Richarlison has scored five times, including three from five as a Spurs player.

The only teams he has ever scored more against are Leicester and Wolves, and while Tudor could also call upon Dominic Solanke, Richarlison is likely to be in slightly better shape.

READ NEXT: Spurs manager crash-outs ranked as Tudor joins Mourinho, Conte…

Tottenham Hotspur have been wretched at home this season, and not just by Premier League standards…

To the surprise of precisely no one, Spurs lost at home again on Thursday night. In a very typically-Tottenham manner.

It started well enough, with Igor Tudor’s side enjoying what many suggested could be their finest two minutes of the season in the first half against Crystal Palace.

They escaped falling behind because Ismaila Sarr couldn’t stop his nose from straying offside, moments before Dominic Solanke put them ahead.

Then, three minutes later, it all went terribly Tottenham.

Their captain and best player Micky Van de Ven was sent off, sparking a collapse that saw Spurs go from being in front on 38 minutes to 3-1 down and a man down by half-time.

For some Spurs fans, it was enough to prompt an early dart. And based on the absolute dross they have been served at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this season, who can blame them?

If the unthinkable happens and Spurs are relegated, their home form will be one of the primary reasons, along with their abject inability to win anywhere in 2026.

Tottenham have taken a measly 10 points from 15 games on their own patch this season, losing nine of them. Only goal difference prevents it from being the worst record in the Premier League.

The wider context below this, the Premier League home table, paints an even bleaker picture…

Across the 92 clubs in the Championship, League One and League Two, only Sheffield Wednesday have gathered fewer points at home.

And the Owls were pretty much condemned to relegation from the second tier before a ball was kicked, back when Thomas Frank was full of hope and optimism for the season ahead.

Across Europe, in the big five leagues, only Hellas Verona, Pisa, Metz, Nantes, and Wolfsburg have all earned fewer points at home.

But all have played fewer home games than Spurs. And only Pisa can match Spurs’ nine defeats on their own turf.

Spurs have four home games remaining in the Premier League: a six-pointer against Nottingham Forest, Leeds, Brighton and Everton.

Forest, Brighton and Everton have all picked up more points away than Spurs have at home, while Leeds’ away record currently matches Spurs’ at home.

READ NEXT: An XI of the best players to be relegated from the Premier League: Who could join in 2025-26?

The calendar year Premier League table reflects very well on Wolves boss Rob Edwards while offering yet another damning indictment on Tottenham Hotspur…

For the first half of the season, all the talk around Wolves was not around whether they might stay up, but whether they could avoid being the worst Premier League team in history. And for a while, it did not look good for the Molineux men.

Finally, Derby’s infamy looked set to end.

Despite the ink barely having dried on a new contract, Wolves took the necessary step of sacking Vitor Pereira – he was certainly not to blame for all Wolves’ woes but he did not seem to be helping – before boiling all the p*ss on Teesside by taking Edwards from promotion-chasing Middlesbrough.

Edwards copped a lot of grief for abandoning Boro in November, especially when it seemed as though the two sides were on course to swap divisions. But Edwards secured a hefty pay-rise and, most crucially, was able to move back to the Midlands where his family still lived.

Still, it seemed a fool’s errand with Wolves winless on two points when he took over and offering little encouragement that they would find the 10 points necessary to beat Derby’s dire haul in 2007/08.

Wolves lost their first seven games under Edwards, not earning their first point under the manager until they went to Old Trafford in their final game of 2025 to face Manchester United. Mercifully for Edwards, this was Amorim’s United, the rubbish one, not Michael Carrick’s all-conquering iteration of the Red Devils.

A draw gave them some encouragement to take into 2026 and Wolves have really run with it since.

Their first game of the year saw West Ham blown away at Molineux with Wolves finally getting their first win of the season. Then came another point, and another, allowing Edwards’ side to build some momentum that few thought they were capable of.

Indeed, the calendar year table shows Wolves to be a top-half team following their late win over Liverpool on Tuesday night, a second victory in five days, when for a while, few doubted if they would manage a couple of wins all season.

Of course, the table paints a particularly bleak picture of Tottenham, who remain the Premier League’s only winless team in 2026.

PREMIER LEAGUE: CALENDAR YEAR TABLE

If we stretch it back even further to since Edwards was appointed on November 12, Wolves are still above Spurs. And that accounts for the seven defeats Edwards began with.

PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE SINCE EDWARDS TOOK OVER AT WOLVES

Note: to create these tables, we’ve used our sister site Football365 and their brilliant Premier League Tables resource – a goldmine for creating and exploring custom tables.

READ NEXT: Ranking the 10 best managers who will be available this summer: Alonso, Pochettino…

Tottenham are yet to win a Premier League match in 2026 and find themselves inching closer to the relegation quagmire every week.

The club are the fifth favourites for relegation with the bookmakers. Should Spurs go down, it’d be one of the biggest shocks in Premier League history, but it could actually happen.

We’ve ranked the eight biggest reasons why a Tottenham relegation isn’t as crazy as you might think.

Were we to be churlish, this entire article could have been reduced to ‘did you see their performance against Arsenal?’.

A change in the dugout did at least offer a reprieve in terms of vibes, with most glad to see the back of Thomas Frank’s dour pragmatism, but the North London derby – with Spurs every bit as bad as they were in the reverse fixture – suggests Spurs’ problems run much deeper.

Igor Tudor had 10 days to prepare for this match. Enough time for us to digest all the long reads about his time at Juventus and Marseille, how he’ll stick a rocket up the players, and the statistics about how he always makes an immediate impact… And then he served up that.

It’s too early to judge the interim. They were playing against the league leaders, on their day the best side in the country, in a derby. That can happen.

But we are left questioning whether Spurs might have been better appointing a manager – not to go too Tim Sherwood – who knows the Premier League (aka “our league”).

Will Tudor’s well-established firefighter credentials from the continent translate over here? Spurs going from averaging 2.1 points per game against the so-called European elite in the Champions League to 1.07 points in the Premier League suggests that might be easier said than done.

The Croatian could well be exactly what they need. But we could also see this all going a bit Felix Magath Mk.II.

Leeds United and West Ham might be in the FA Cup, but they’re very much focused on the matter at hand. Nottingham Forest will harbour ambitions of winning the Europa League, but that shouldn’t prove as taxing as Tottenham’s upcoming Champions League excursions.

In the next round, Spurs will likely play Galatasaray (5-2 up against Juventus) or Club Brugge or Atletico Madrid, which still hangs in the balance. A trip to Istanbul, or facing Simeone’s Atleti, doesn’t sound ideal.

We can’t quite believe we’re saying this, given how dismal they’ve been in the league, but we could even see Spurs putting together a decent run and going even further. They’ve proven their ‘big European night’ credentials with last season’s Europa League victory and subsequent league phase form.

Avoid Premier League opposition – bar maybe Man City, who they still enjoy a hoodoo over – and they could go far. Paradoxically, that might be the last thing they need.

Were we feeling a bit more charitable, we could place this at No.1.

You could put together a very good XI of players who are currently unavailable. Had the likes of Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison been fit all season, they’d surely be at worst in midtable.

But you have to play the hand you’re dealt and there’s no use pining for what might’ve been.

Tottenham’s squad-building and recruitment has been questionable, to say the least, in recent years.

But even with so many key players sidelined, this team shouldn’t be anywhere near as bad as it has been. There are some quality players there.

You look at this squad, and you wonder who is going to step up and drag them out of this mess. Micky van de Ven’s head looks elsewhere already. Archie Gray is a kid. Xavi Simons possesses quality, but is he what you want in a relegation scrap?

Club captain Cristian Romero is a leader, but is he the right kind of leader? He’s suspended for two more games yet. He might be correct, and it sure must be cathartic, but is aiming both barrels at the club hierarchy actually achieving anything?

Last season, and the season before, the newly-promoted clubs were so feeble that any of the big dogs could afford to take their eye off the ball, safe in the knowledge that there’d always be three worse teams.

Indeed, Tottenham did exactly that last season, putting all their eggs in the Europa League basket and ending up 17th. It worked out in the end, but their tally of 38 points would’ve seen them go down in other years. It might not be enough this season.

Sunderland are practically home and hosed already. Leeds United are making a really decent fist of it, rarely losing since Daniel Farke switched to a back five in November.

Yes, Wolves have been historically bad and Burnley are gone, but there’s one other spot up for grabs.

West Ham are the current relegation favourites and have five points to make up, but they’re showing more signs of life than Spurs.

Nuno Espirito Santo’s Hammers have picked up seven more points than Tottenham so far this calendar year. They could easily have had at least five more points with a bit more rub of the green in recent outings against Bournemouth, Manchester United and Chelsea.

Only Wolves have picked up fewer points and lost more games on home soil than Tottenham this season.

Unbelievably, Spurs have managed just one league win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium since the opening weekend.

They might boast one of the best stadiums in world football, but it’s anything but a fortress. Contrast that to Elland Road.

Yes, Tottenham are the only side without a win in the Premier League in 2026. But we can be guilty of being overly reactive to poor runs of form.

Step back, take a breath, and take a look at the bigger picture. Good idea.

Tottenham’s form over the past 18 months tells you this is no short-term problem. They mustered just 38 points last season.

They’ve picked up just 34 points from the last 38 games. Of the 17 ever-present clubs going back to March 2025, only Wolves have a worse record.

Spurs have picked up just three more points than Leeds over that period, despite playing 11 more matches.

READ: The crazy Premier League table over the past 38 games shows that Spurs could really go down

Were you not paying attention this season, it would be a fair assumption to make that this is just a freak season; that Tottenham have just been profoundly unfortunate and don’t deserve to be where they are.

Think Jurgen Klopp’s last season at Borussia Dortmund, whereby the data suggested they were just really unlucky to be scrapping relegation at the midway point.

This kind of thing just does not happen. The club with the sixth most expensively assembled squad and sixth highest wage bill should be insulated from relegation worries.

Surely they’re not as bad as the results suggest? Au contraire – they might actually be worse.

Tottenham’s cumulative xG in the Premier League this season is 32.9. Only Wolves, Burnley and Sunderland have notched a lower number. No side in the division is outperforming their expected goals more.

Sixteenth with 29 points is exactly where Spurs deserve to be. There’s little about their performances, and the numbers behind them, that suggest this ship is going to turn around any time soon.

READ NEXT: The amazing XI Tottenham would’ve had if they’d backed Ange Postecoglou

Tottenham are bonafide relegation candidates if you look at the Premier League table over the past 38 matches.

Of the 17 teams to have been in the top flight over the past year – not including last season’s relegated trio or the newly-promoted clubs in 2025-26 – only Wolverhampton Wanderers have taken fewer points than Spurs.

We’re still scratching our heads over how a member of the league’s so-called ‘big six’, the reigning Europa League winners who finished above the likes of Barcelona, Man City, Real Madrid and PSG in the Champions League league phase, could possibly be threatened by relegation – but a season’s worth of games should provide a sober wake-up call.

Sunderland have played 10 fewer matches and have picked up more points in this table. So too have Leeds United, among Spurs’ direct rivals for relegation, and they’ve only picked up three fewer points.

Elsewhere in the table, Aston Villa sit third – ahead of the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool – while Manchester United are down in eighth, only marginally ahead of the likes of Everton, Brighton and Crystal Palace.

West Ham have been comparable to Spurs over the past 38 games, but they’ve shown more signs of life in recent weeks.

Tottenham’s interim manager Igor Tudor is not worrying about relegation, but he did concede that he’s stepping into “emergency” situation.

“100%,” Tudor responded when asked if he believes that the club will still be in the Premier League next season.

“What I saw this week was the quality of the players. We have enormous quality in the squad.”

“When you start pre-season and then you have 50 days in pre-season and you have 20 players, of course then we see the style.

“This is an emergency, an emergency situation, when you need to find fast what suits the 10 plus three players and it’s totally different.”

Here’s how the table stacks up since March 2025, with most teams in the division playing a season’s worth of games over that period.

Note: to create this table, we’ve used our sister site Football365 and their brilliant Premier League Tables resource – a goldmine for creating and exploring custom tables.

READ NEXT: The wild Premier League table over the past 10 seasons since 2016: Man Utd 5th…