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James Maddison admits players must look in the mirror and questions club's injury record after final day survival

James Maddison insists workaholic Roberto De Zerbi can lead the club back to where it belongs.

Maddison says Tottenham would be facing the “disaster” of relegation without De Zerbi but predicts they can emulate Manchester United next season without the added pressure of European football.

Tottenham midfielder Maddison painted the picture of De Zerbi working at the training ground until at least 9pm every night while going through tactics with his coaching staff. Maddison, who revealed he stays in the training ground accommodation the night before games to get a good night’s sleep, says De Zerbi’s infectious attitude is the reason why they beat the drop.

England star Maddison said: “Without that appointment, disaster could have maybe struck, but it didn’t and he takes a lot of credit for that because of the work he's done. Behind the scenes, training pitch.

“He’s the last one to leave the training ground. He’s so passionate. He's been living at the training ground with the guys, with his team. I go and stay at the training ground the night before, every home game, and I turn up just to get a good night's sleep. He's there. He's there at 9pm, with all his staff, they’ve got the tactics board, there's like six of them.

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“He's just obsessed with football. He's passionate, and when you feel the authenticity of someone who's passionate for Tottenham… Because I am, I love this club and I want this club to be successful so bad. And when you see the man who's steering the ship, it means everything.

“When he's genuine and not just saying it for the sake of a motivational meeting, you can tell he means that. That's why he says: ‘I have blood inside me, not water.’ That’s what he always says - and he means it.”

Maddison only returned for the run-in because of injury but he says there must be soul searching this summer and he pointed to the overcrowded treatment table as a major factor. But Maddison was honest enough to say that the players must also look at themselves in the mirror to look for the reasons why they only survived by the skin of their teeth after finishing 17th for a second season running.

Maddison said: “We hold ourselves to the highest standards and we have to look for reasons and look in the mirror as to what went wrong.

“I am trying to give you the answers you are looking for without being fully in it. I’ve been injured but the reality is, we haven't been good enough. That's why we're in the position we are in.

“Now, we have to really figure out over the summer why that was the case. Europa League last year but the Premier League again was not good enough.

“Part of it is if you go all through all the clubs and you rip out some of the biggest names… our situation with the injuries has been worse than any other club.

“People try and say: ‘Oh, but we've got this…’ But ours is ours is astronomical and we need to look at why that is. Sometimes it can just be a coincidence.”

Maddison insists that Tottenham can get back up the table next season as he insists they owe it to the fans who gave them an incredible reception after they beat Everton to stay up. He also believes they can take a leaf out of Manchester United’s book.

United have got back into the Champions League after a season without European football and now Spurs have the same scenario next year and Maddison says they must turn that into a positive.

Maddison added: “We’ve got no Europe which is not what this club should be at, but it is the reality and it helped United this year so I’m excited…

“Our fans deserve it. Our fans are unbelievable. I think they are the best in the world. Best in the league, traveling and at home. We didn't deserve that, what they gave us after the game.

“And then, it honestly gives me goosebumps even just talking about because they are a powerful tool for us. It’s unbelievable.”

Tottenham have secured their top-flight survival and are now set to complete two transfers from Premier League rivals

Tottenham are poised to sign Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi following their successful battle to remain in the Premier League. The club are said to have agreed deals in principle to sign the duo on free transfers on the proviso they stayed in the top flight.

Roberto De Zerbi's men headed into their final fixture against Everton aware that a single point would probably suffice to stave off the drop to the Championship, thanks to their superior goal difference. They sat in 17th spot, two points clear of 18th-placed West Ham, who hosted Leeds United.

Ultimately, Tottenham delivered the goods by defeating Everton 1-0 courtesy of Joao Palhinha's first-half goal. It lifted them to 41 points from their 38 fixtures and guaranteed top-flight status for next season.

Now that Tottenham's Premier League place has been rubber-stamped for 2026/27, the club are preparing to wrap up two signings. Robertson is the first expected to arrive after his summer departure from Liverpool, with Fabrizio Romano reporting that a 'verbal agreement' had already been reached for the left-back to join the north London outfit should they stay up.

Robertson, 32, has spent the past nine years at Liverpool, racking up over 350 appearances and collecting numerous major honours, including two Premier League titles and the Champions League.

The Scotland international is set to inject some desperately needed experience and quality into Tottenham's backline and vie with Destiny Udogie and Djed Spence for the left-back berth.

He bid farewell to the Reds after their 1-1 stalemate with Brentford on Sunday, as he gets ready to depart Anfield and become a free agent when his contract expires in June.

Tottenham are now set to finalise the paperwork on Robertson's switch to N17 and get the deal over the line.

The second arrival expected through the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium doors is Bournemouth centre-half Senesi, who had been in 'advanced talks' with Spurs, contingent on the club securing top-flight survival. Like Robertson, the 29-year-old Argentine is out of contract this summer with his deal at the Cherries running down.

While he has attracted considerable interest from elsewhere, Senesi is anticipated to become De Zerbi's second capture at Tottenham and link up with Robertson in north London.

The former Feyenoord man has been at Bournemouth since 2022 and has clocked up over 100 appearances during his spell on the south coast.

This season, he has been a vital cog in the Bournemouth side that claimed sixth spot in the Premier League and booked their place in the Europa League.

He is poised to inject some genuine top-flight quality into Spurs' defensive ranks and provide them with battle-tested experience and calibre for the campaign ahead.

Eberechi Eze is a Premier League winner after Arsenal clinched a first domestic title in 22 years but things could have panned out very differently for the former Crystal Palace star

Eberechi Eze couldn't help but smile when he was asked about his decision to join Arsenal over Tottenham after lifting the Premier League trophy on Sunday.

The attacking midfielder and his Arsenal team-mates were crowned champions earlier in the week as a result of Manchester City's failure to beat Bournemouth. And they enjoyed a celebration to remember following Sunday's 2-1 win over Crystal Palace as they basked in the glory of clinching Arsenal's first title in 22 years.

Things could have worked out much differently for Eze, who was offered the chance to join Arsenal's bitter rivals back in the summer.

The 27-year-old ended up joining Arsenal after Mikel Arteta hijacked the move, though, and he was asked by a jovial Lee Dixon if he felt he had made the right decision on NBC Sports.

Eze and the former Arsenal defender shared a laugh together before a smiling Eze replied: "I'm pretty sure I did."

While Arsenal were lifting the trophy on Sunday, Spurs were left fretting over their Premier League status after becoming embroiled in a relegation dogfight.

They stayed up by the skin of their teeth courtesy of a nervy 1-0 win over Everton, condemning West Ham to the drop in the process.

Not only had Tottenham been spurned by Eze back in the summer, the midfielder also scored a hat-trick against them in the north London derby. Eze was on the scoresheet again in the second game, bagging a brace in a game which also ended 4-1.

Arsenal could yet add to a first Premier League title in 22 years with victory in the Champions League and Eze was asked what was behind the special feeling in the dressing room ahead of next weekend's final in Budapest with Paris Saint-Germain.

"It's faith," he replied. "Faith and belief. It's showing itself in so many different places. I just feel like everyone's got this feeling that we can do it, that we can achieve things.

"I feel like that feeling is all over the place really."

Tottenham are already looking ahead to the 2026/27 season after narrowly avoiding relegation on the final day of the campaign with a 1-0 win over Everton on Sunday

Roberto De Zerbi believes that Tottenham only have "10 to 12 players" who are good enough to play for the club next season. Spurs avoided relegation from the Premier League on the final day of the season with a 1-0 win over Everton and are planning how to avoid a third successive campaign down the bottom of the table.

Joao Palhinha's scrappy goal was enough for them to secure 17th place for the second straight season and condemn West Ham to the Championship. De Zerbi arrived with seven games left to try and keep Spurs up after the failed reigns of Thomas Frank and Igor Tudor and has been successful.

But after back-to-back dismal league campaigns, Tottenham are plotting a way up the table. And after taking 11 points under the Italian manager, De Zerbi is planning a major clear-out this summer.

"From tonight we have to start to organise and to build a new team," he said in his post-match press conference. "I don't think we have now to change too many players. We have 10, 11, 12 players good enough to stay. Good enough. Like players. Especially like people. And then we have to complete the squad with the first level of players.

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"First level of players because we suffered too much. I suffered a lot but I think the fans, the club, the board, the players. They suffered too much. We are Tottenham and we can't suffer like this until the last second of the last game to stay up.

"And I will be stronger. I will be stronger. I don't want to decide alone because football is a group - sporting director, scouting, CEO - but my target now is finished to stay up. My target is to start the pre-season with the team I have in my dream."

Asked which players had been key to Spurs avoiding the drop, De Zerbi replied: "[Radu] Dragusin. Dragusin was top because he didn't play, but he was always positive inside the dressing room. Inside the pitch. [Rodrigo] Bentancur. Because Bentancur, when he came back from the injury, he wanted to play. He came to me to say, ‘hey, I want to play. I'm ready to play.’

"Joao Palhinha, because at the beginning of my time, he didn't play in Sunderland, here with Brighton and Wolverhampton. Ben Davies. Yesterday, he came to the Lodge with us.

"Djed Spence. Before the Chelsea game he came in my office. Another one to say ‘I want to play.’ He said, ‘You always speak about the personality, the courage. I'm here, if you want to play with one player,’ and he was fantastic, I love it.

"Micky van de Ven. Great guy, sensitive guy. I spent a lot of time with him, because I consider him the best centre-back, left-centre-back in the Premier League, with Levi Colwill, because he was my former player and I can't forget him. But a lot of other players. Richarlison, Archie Gray, I can't say one."

Tottenham Hotspur have finished 17th in the Premier League for the second successive season, staying up by the skin of their teeth

Micky van de Ven admitted Tottenham should be “embarrassed” they only saved themselves from relegation on the final day of the season.

Tottenham survived by the skin of their teeth after Joao Palhinha scored the winner in their first home win in the Premier League since December 6. It sparked wild celebrations at the final whistle as Spurs avoided one of the worst days in the history of the club as Tottenham went down at the expense of West Ham.

Tottenham defender van de Ven said: “It is unacceptable that the last game we played this season we play for relegation. This club has some unbelievable players.

“It was embarrassing to let it come to the final day but we did it and that is what is important. To be honest I was more emotional at the end of the final whistle, it has been a tough season for me personally as well.

“I played almost every game and I have suffered a lot, the emotions are really happy and we must not let it happen again."

OPINION

Tottenham boss Roberto De Zerbi, who took over as the club’s third manager of the season just last month, described it as the biggest achievement of his career to keep the club up - but insisted it cannot happen again.

De Zerbi said: “We are Tottenham and we cannot suffer from the last second of the last match of the season. My target has been to stay up and now my next target is to build a team for the next season.

“Today was unbelievable. From where we were, it was the best day in my career along with taking Brighton into Europe. The fans were incredible. I suffered a lot through the game but my life is so nice because of the pressure in football. Without that pressure it would not be nice.

“Next season we have to build a top, top, top team. We don't have to change too many players in our squad but we have to bring in some first level players.”

Tottenham Hotspur secured their survival on the final day of the Premier League season with a 1-0 win over Everton as Joao Palhinha scored the only goal of the game

There should be no cause for celebration. You can understand the huge overwhelming sense of relief in the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium at the final whistle.

The stadium began to chant “We are staying up” after Roberto De Zerbi did his best David Pleat impression as the Spurs boss ran onto the pitch with echoes of Luton’s great escape at Manchester City all those years ago. The players then went round the pitch to whip up the fans to celebrate with the long-suffering fans as if it was some sort of miraculous great escape from relegation.

And when they began to play “Glory, Glory Tottenham Hotspur” it showed that this great club has truly forgotten what it stands for. Maybe you can indulge the fans this time - but rival supporters will be looking on to see how far this great club has fallen.

No-one should remember this day as anything other than the lowest, most embarrassing point for Tottenham in the Premier League era.

It has been an utter shambles on the pitch, off the pitch and this must serve as a warning to the club’s hierarchy this can never be allowed to happen again.

You have to credit the Tottenham fans because they were so loud before kick-off and they created a remarkable atmosphere to lift and inspire the players.

Incredibly, this was Tottenham’s first home win in the Premier League in this calendar year, a run which stretches back 170 days to December 6 when they beat Brentford 2-0 under Thomas Frank’s reign.

They have had two managers since then and, after Igor Tudor’s disastrous caretaker spell, De Zerbi has finally managed to lift this group of underperforming players to safety.

Ultimately, Joao Palhinha scored the goal to secure the win, Spurs’ safety and yet really far too many of them should hang their heads in shame.

This is no one-off freak of a season. They finished fourth from bottom last season and have finished 17th again. This whole club needs a reset.

Six years ago, they had pretensions of being part of the European Super League and, from there, they have become perennial strugglers who have survived by their skin of their teeth. Again. They built their magnificent 60,000 stadium to become one of the biggest clubs in Europe and yet so nearly dropped into the Championship. They were lucky West Ham were even worse.

Frankly, they were also very lucky they faced an Everton side who looked like they were already on the beach and had two players - Jordan Pickford and James Garner - papped coming out of a strip club this week.

There was never really a sense of jeopardy in the stadium because it was always going to take Tottenham to lose, West Ham to win and Spurs never went behind. The news filtered into the stadium that West Ham were ahead and you could sense the nerves and tension. When the board went up to show nine minutes of added time, there were huge groans

However, Tottenham have been so bad this season they still thought one Everton goal might change all that. That is how bad Spurs have been. The fans feared they could still lose it.

Spurs keeper Antonin Kinsky made a sensational save from Everton substitute Tyrique George deep into injury time. Kinsky, the fall guy in the Champions League at Atletico Madrid, made another incredible stop to deny Leeds victory two weeks ago. He did similar at Wolves.

Those are the small margins which have Tottenham in the top flight. Last season, Tottenham at least won the Europa League. But they still did not learn their lesson.

If they do not improve this summer then they only have themselves to blame. De Zerbi looks to have the energy and hunger needed.

But when the TV cameras panned to the directors’ box during the game, you could see the nerves etched over the faces of the hierarchy. No wonder.

It would have been a disaster on every level and one of the biggest stories in the history of the Premier League if they had gone down. It cannot happen again.

Gary Neville laid into Tottenham within seconds of them securing Premier League safety following their 1-0 win over Everton

Gary Neville told Tottenham Hotspur’s players to apologise to the club’s supporters for the way they have performed this season, branding them 'disgraceful'. Defeat against Chelsea on Tuesday night meant Spurs required a draw or victory against Everton this afternoon to guarantee survival.

And even though West Ham United beat Leeds United 3-0 at the London Stadium, Joao Palhinha’s goal two minutes before the break was enough to ensure his side will be playing in the Premier League next season. But the campaign has been a disastrous one for Spurs.

They have had three head coaches, and multiple unwanted records have been set, including losing six games in a row for the first time in the club’s history and going on a 15-match winless run in the Premier League.

And speaking in the immediate aftermath of the full-time whistle going at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Neville said: "They made today as comfortable as they could possibly could do. Roberto De Zerbi has got them over the line.

“If I were those Tottenham players who have been an absolute disgrace this last three months, they should be heading around this stadium and apologising to the Tottenham fans en masse because they come here every single week, those fans, 60,000 every week, to this great ground and this great club and they've been underserved.

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“But at least they have a time now, Tottenham can reset in the summer, decide who they want on the bus, who they want off the bus, knowing that they will at least have Premier League football and their fans can go home easy tonight."

Former Spurs star Jamie Redknapp was similarly damning in his assessment of his old club's season after they narrowly avoided relegation.

"There will be a mixture of total joy but embarrassment as well because you've found yourself in this position but today you have got to enjoy it, the fans have got to enjoy it, the players, the staff but tomorrow there has to be a major inquiry into how this club with this stature and this fan base has got themselves into this predicament," he said.

"The emotion today, that's all fine, but this can't happen again. Huge three points for them, De Zerbi has come in and made a bit of a difference but not good enough this season, not by any stretch of the imagination."

Speaking after the game, Palhinha said: "It's an amazing feeling after a really tough season. A lot of things happened this season but we showed today what we can do.

"After a bad season like this one we showed up as a collective and had amazing support from the fans. The club will grow up with this season and we know what we have to do in the future.

"It's a big pleasure to play here with a top coach and top team-mates. We have to celebrate even if we didn't finish the position we deserve as Tottenham."

On his goal, the midfielder said: "It was just a goal. I just tried to help the team. I had a lot of emotions and wanted to dedicate it to my two sons and my parents."

West Ham's 3-0 win against Leeds doesn't matter as Tottenham beat Everton 1-0 to send Nuno Espirito Santo's side down from the Premier League and into the Championship on the final day

West Ham have been relegated from the Premier League for the first time in 15 years after losing their battle with Tottenham on the final day of the season. The Hammers have been circling the drain for much of the campaign and their fate was sealed despite a 3-0 win over Leeds.

Trailing by two points, Nuno Espirito Santo's side needed to beat Leeds and for Spurs to lose against Everton, but that never looked like happening. Joao Palhinha's scrappy rebound from a corner sent Spurs in at the break 1-0 up, while West Ham were booed off by their own fans at the London Stadium with the score at 0-0 at half-time.

Taty Castellanos headed in Jarrod Bowen's corner to give them the lead midway through the second half. But Everton were not doing their bit, having failed to have a shot on target after 65 minutes, meaning that Bowen's low finish to make it 2-0 and Callum Wilson's drive in the 94th minute counted for little.

The Hammers came into the final day in poor form, having lost three straight games against Brentford, Arsenal and Newcastle, and with their supporters downbeat and statisticians Opta giving them just a 15 per cent chance of escaping. Other than a diving save from Antonin Kinsky to deny Everton winger Tyrique George in injury time, there was no magic in the air in London on a sweltering summers' day as logic kept the drama at bay.

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Castellanos failed to get a shot away when clean through on goal early in the second half and blasted another opening high and wide minutes later. But the £26million summer signing came good when he nodded in a corner and star player Bowen showed his quality once more with a high-quality solo goal before Wilson pinged a shot into the bottom corner in injury-time but barely celebrated.

Yet the atmosphere inside the London Stadium told the real story, with no news of an Everton revival coming through. West Ham's third relegation from the Premier League, after 2002-03 and 2010-11, was confirmed when the final whistle blew a few miles to the north west, with the Tottenham game lagging behind after a farcical delay due to the referee's communication equipment.

The Hammers posted a £104.2m loss for the last financial year and their relegation will inevitably mean player sales, with captain Bowen - their top scorer for a fifth consecutive season - and midfielder Mateus Fernandes, who only joined for £42m from Southampton last summer, the most valuable assets who are set to move on.

It also has implications for London taxpayers, who will see an extra £2.5m diverted from public services to cover increased operating costs at the London Stadium, where the Hammers have the most favourable of rent deals.

Spurs had taken eight points six games under De Zerbi before the final day yet had to overcome a miserable home record. But Everton arrived in north London winless in six games and never really looked like helping David Moyes keep his former club up in a flat performance which screamed last day of the season.

Ultimately, the decision to make De Zerbi the third manager of the season, after Thomas Frank and Igor Tudor, has been vindicated, giving a sweet end to an otherwise miserable campaign. Spurs have now secured back-to-back 17th-place finishes and will need a major rebuild over the summer to avoid a repeat.

For West Ham, their change from Graham Potter to Nuno in September has not paid off. Now they are braced for a revolution before starting life in the Championship next season.

Tottenham have taken a huge stride to securing Premier League survival as they lead Everton 1-0 at half-time. Joao Palhinha's goal just before the interval is the difference at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

As it stands, Spurs are 17th on 41 points, four more than 18th-place West Ham, who are drawing 0-0 against Leeds United but are poised to be relegated to the Championship if results stay as they are.

Elsewhere, Liverpool are heading for the Champions League with Bournemouth losing at Nottingham Forest and the Reds drawing 0-0 at home to Brentford. Brighton are trailing 2-0 against Manchester United in their fight for Europe, while Sunderland are beating Chelsea in a crucial game in that race.

Manchester City are winning 1-0 against Aston Villa in Pep Guardiola's final game at the helm, while champions Arsenal lead Crystal Palace, Wolves are 1-0 up at Burnley and Fulham are ahead against Newcastle United.

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