The New York Times

Archie Gray will be one of the only Tottenham Hotspur players to emerge with any credit from this miserable season. It is remarkable when you consider that he only turned 20 on Thursday while his team-mates are a collection of senior internationals.

Spurs have lost six matches in a row for the first time in their 144-year history. They are one point above the Premier League’s relegation zone and will probably be eliminated from the Champions League following Tuesday’s crushing 5-2 first-leg defeat to Atletico Madrid.

It has been a season of misery and anger for Tottenham fans, so the response to the club’s ‘Happy Birthday’ message for Gray probably says a lot.

While most things Tottenham have posted on social media in recent months have been met with scathing responses from fans furious with the direction the club in heading, there was universal love and appreciation for Gray — hundreds of comments wishing him well and praising him for being one of this team’s real leaders.

Gray has registered four direct goal contributions since he joined Spurs for £40million ($53m) from Leeds United in July 2024. Three of those — one goal and two assists — have come in his last four Premier League matches. While the attitude of other players has come into question, Gray is doing everything he can to help Spurs avoid relegation.

A brilliant piece of skill led to Dominic Solanke opening the scoring in last week’s defeat to Crystal Palace, while a few days earlier, a beautiful cross had set up Richarlison to head home against Fulham. Gray grabbed an equaliser in Thomas Frank’s final game in charge against Newcastle, but Jacob Ramsey scored Newcastle’s winner minutes later.

In fact, Gray scored the only goal the last time Spurs won a top-flight fixture back on December 28 at Selhurst Park. He has more league goals (two) than Wilson Odobert, Xavi Simons, Conor Gallagher and Randal Kolo Muani, even though they are all regular starters, when fit, and play in more advanced positions.

Gray’s flexibility has made him a useful tool under three successive head coaches. The England Under-21 international prefers to play in central midfield but has slotted into the defence on multiple occasions. Since Igor Tudor replaced Frank on an interim basis last month, Gray has performed at left wing-back, right wing-back and in midfield across four games.

For the second season in a row, Gray had to wait patiently for his chance. Ange Postecoglou had started Gray in all of Spurs’ Europa League initial phase games in the 2024-25 campaign, but he did not make his first league start until a 1-0 defeat to Bournemouth that December. An injury crisis led to him featuring regularly from that point onwards, and he was shunted across the defence depending on which other players were available.

There was optimism when Frank combined Gray with Lucas Bergvall and Pape Matar Sarr in midfield on the opening weekend of this season. The youthful blend complemented each other perfectly in a 3-0 victory over Burnley.

“I like (Gray’s) dynamic,” Frank said. “He’s covering a lot of ground; he’s good in duels. Good in the pressure and great to carry the ball forward as well.”

Bizarrely, Gray was then an unused substitute in eight of Tottenham’s next 11 fixtures. He missed two of those games with a calf injury and came off the bench in the 89th minute of their 2-2 draw with Brighton & Hove Albion. Gray’s only starts until the defeat to Fulham on November 29 came in a Carabao Cup tie against third-tier Doncaster Rovers and a goalless Champions League draw at Monaco. Frank put greater trust in the duo of Rodrigo Bentancur and Joao Palhinha.

Gray grew in importance across December and January, playing regularly in midfield. He has been forced to cover full-backs Destiny Udogie, Djed Spence and Pedro Porro over the last few weeks as they have all spent time out injured. Gray has started Tottenham’s last eight games in all competitions, which covers the end of Frank’s reign and Tudor’s spell in charge.

Gray’s selflessness and willingness to play wherever his manager needs him are admirable but the long-term effects of this on his development need to be considered. Spurs bought Gray with the intention of developing him into a quality holding midfielder.

“That’s the problem,” interim Tottenham head coach Igor Tudor said when asked in Friday’s press conference about Gray having so regularly changed positions. “He needs to, every game, change position. Four games here, four positions for Archie Gray. He’s an amazing player, but that’s been (a problem). Beautiful guy, beautiful player. I didn’t know him before so much, so from inside, he has my big respect.”

This will have stunted his growth but hopefully it is only a temporary setback. The concern is that Gray is not the only young player who might struggle to fulfil their potential at Spurs. Bergvall, Tel, Odobert and Antonin Kinsky have shown flashes of their quality, yet it is hard to consistently impress when the team is low on confidence and in a precarious position in the table.

It is not just Gray’s goal contributions which have stood out. While other players have been guilty of dropping their heads during games, Gray is always brimming with energy. Gray has grown up with huge expectations on his shoulders because several members of his family played football, including his dad Andy and great uncle Eddie.

They all represented Leeds United, while his younger brother Harry is on loan with League One side Rotherham United. Gray was only 17 when he was part of Leeds’ squad under Daniel Farke which was expected to achieve promotion in the 2023-24 season but lost the Championship play-off final to Southampton. Maybe it is why he does not buckle or look nervous under pressure in the same way as some of his team-mates. Gray is becoming more vocal on and off the pitch, too.

“He’s a phenomenal player, great guy and he’s one of the boys who has been speaking as well, which he has every right to,” Solanke told Sky Sports before this weekend’s game against Liverpool.

“You have seen him play all over the pitch this season, so he is such a versatile player and he is still so young. So it is great to have him in the team and he has so much potential. Even now, you can see how much he adds to the team as well.”

Gray might be required to play out of position again this weekend. Captain Cristian Romero and Palhinha are unavailable to face Liverpool after a stoppage-time clash of heads against Atletico, while Micky van de Ven is suspended. Radu Dragusin and Djed Spence have both missed recent matches with minor injuries too.

Tudor might be left with no other choice but to partner Gray with Kevin Danso at centre-back. It will be a difficult challenge for the 20-year-old to come up against Hugo Ekitike, Florian Wirtz and Mohamed Salah, but you can guarantee he will not complain.

Tottenham Hotspur are actively working on options to replace Igor Tudor as head coach if they decide another change is needed in the dugout.

Tudor was appointed last month on a deal until the end of this season after Thomas Frank’s sacking.

But the 47-year-old Croatian has lost each of his four games at the helm, leaving Spurs in a tense battle to avoid relegation from the Premier League.

The short-term impact Tudor has enjoyed in crisis situations elsewhere is yet to materialise, leading the north London side to explore a further alteration as they try to achieve top-flight survival.

A squad ravaged by injury and suspension travel to reigning champions Liverpool on Sunday, when the situation could get even worse, and Spurs are contingency planning for the event of bringing Tudor’s reign to an end following the Anfield trip.

The club have declined to comment but it is likely this would be viewed internally as an expected and sensible course of action, given the circumstances.

Should Tudor exit, Spurs must choose whether they stick to the original plan of implementing an interim solution through to the summer or bring forward the installation of a longer-term boss.

After the Liverpool game, Tottenham will host Atletico Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie, facing a 5-2 aggregate deficit.

On March 22, Nottingham Forest will make the trip to north London in a crucial battle between two teams seeking to avoid the drop.

Spurs running out of time to find the right formula

Analysis by football writer Elias Burke

Having failed to make a positive impact in his four matches in charge, it’s perhaps no surprise Tottenham are already looking at alternatives to Tudor in a desperate bid to ensure Premier League survival.

Tudor’s start hasn’t been easy, facing table-toppers Arsenal in his first match in charge before a short trip to Craven Cottage to play a Fulham side eyeing Europe. His side then went ahead against Crystal Palace, but soon found themselves 3-1 behind before half-time after Micky van de Ven was sent off. But after a calamitous opening 15 minutes at the Metropolitano Stadium on Tuesday, where three separate individual errors were pounced upon by Atletico Madrid, Tudor’s position came under further scrutiny.

With just nine games remaining, starting at Anfield on Sunday, a potential new head coach does not have much time to make an impact. But with a crucial relegation six-pointer against Forest next Sunday, the need for a first league win of 2026 has never been greater.

Arne Slot says Rio Ngumoha is staking a strong claim for a first Premier League start ahead of Sunday’s clash with struggling Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield.

The 17-year-old shone in last week’s 3-1 FA Cup victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers before being an unused substitute in Tuesday’s 1-0 Champions League defeat by Galatasaray.

Slot has been keen not to overburden the winger, who has made 11 league appearances off the bench so far this season, but it is becoming harder to leave him out given the injection of pace and creativity he provides.

“We have treated him carefully this season,” Slot said at a news conference on Friday. “He cannot have too many days in a row on the pitch because of (potential) stress fractures. Players of this age can have them and have had them at this club.

“Jayden Danns is one of the examples of that but Rio is a player who could start for us. I said a month ago he would get more playing time and we’ve all seen him coming in for longer spells and starting against Wolves (in the FA Cup).

“He is definitely an option to start in one of the upcoming three games because for the fifth time this season we have to play three times in seven days with an early kick-off at Brighton next Saturday. We’ve been very ‘lucky’ with that schedule this season.”

Slot expects to have Alisson back in goal for the visit of Spurs. Giorgi Mamardashvili deputised against Galatasaray after the Brazilian keeper picked up a minor injury in training on Monday.

“Ali has been with the physios until now. Let’s see if he can join the team session today,” Slot said. “It’s something I expect but not 100 per cent sure yet. I am hopeful (he will be available).

“He felt something in one of his muscles when he passed the ball. When we checked it, it was so minor we don’t think it needs to take long but as always games come so fast. He had to miss Galatasaray.

“Hopefully, he’s ready and available for Sunday. If not I’m expecting him to definitely be back for the second leg against Galatasaray.”

Federico Chiesa is also set to return to the squad after missing the trip to Istanbul due to illness.

Meanwhile, Slot insists it would be wrong to make sweeping judgements about the current strength of the Premier League after the English clubs’ struggles in the last 16 of the Champions League this week.

Four of the six clubs were beaten — three of them by three-goal margins — with Arsenal and Newcastle United managing draws.

“Jumping to a conclusion after one game day, which is such a small sample size, is never the smartest thing to do. Maybe after next week we will have a different conclusion,” he added.

“In general, I don’t think it’s helpful for English clubs not to have a winter break. But I’m not saying those games were lost this week because there wasn’t a break. When you’re in the last 16 of Europe, you’re facing very good teams.

“Five of the six English teams in the Champions League played away from home. It’s usually a disadvantage to play away.

“To say the Premier League level is not as high as we expected it to be isn’t the right conclusion to make at this moment. Let’s judge us all after next week.”

Welcome to week 30 of The Athletic’s Premier League predictions challenge, where the subscribers are now leading the way.

For the first time since September, you guys are on top of the table: the early-season pacesetters who lost their way but have clawed their way back to the summit.

Frankly, the thought of being beaten by the subscribers terrifies me.

As much as the thought of being beaten by six-year-old Wilfred? Even more so, actually. At least if Wilfred wins, I can say I was up against a child prodigy, whereas if you lot win… no, I don’t even want to contemplate it.

Still, at least the algorithm’s continuing inconsistencies are of some consolation.

Each week since the season began in August, four of us — young Wilfred, a guest subscriber on rotation, an algorithm and I — have been predicting the Premier League results with varying degrees of success.

We’re awarding three points for each correct scoreline and one point for each correct result. We’re also awarding a bonus point for any “unique” scoreline, so, for example, last week’s guest subscriber Derian, a Chelsea fan from New York, picked up a bonus point because he was the only one to predict West Ham beating Fulham away.

In a challenging week for the rest of us, Derian picked up seven points for the subscribers, with one correct scoreline (Everton 2-0 Burnley) and another three correct results, including that bonus point for West Ham’s victory.

Week 29 is summed up by the fact that five results caught all of us by surprise: Sunderland’s win at Leeds, Wolves’ defeat of Liverpool, Nottingham Forest’s draw at Manchester City, Newcastle’s dramatic last-gasp triumph against Manchester United and (hang on, why did nobody see this coming?) Tottenham’s capitulation at home to Crystal Palace.

It has been that sort of season, especially for me, but I was happy finally to get a correct scoreline with Everton 2-0 Burnley. I expected a bonus point for backing Chelsea to get three points away at Aston Villa, but Derian was wise to it too.

It leaves the subscribers with a slender one-point lead over Wilfred at the top of the table. I am well adrift, having had a torrid run since January, so it’s looking very much like a two-horse race.

This week sees the subscribers’ baton passed to another New Yorker, 43-year-old Liverpool fan Tim. Can he keep their challenge going? No pressure, Tim…

Our subscriber’s match of the week

Manchester United vs Aston Villa, Sunday, 2pm UK/10am ET

Tim says: “I think United v Villa is the match to watch. Both teams are under pressure from Chelsea and Liverpool for the top four. Will one of them rise up and take three points, or will they both struggle just to keep a single point?”

Manchester United 2-2 Aston Villa

Oli says: “Will these two teams still be third and fourth when the music stops in May? I’m more confident in Manchester United right now, particularly with no cup commitments to distract them. Villa have begun to drift a little (one win in six Premier League games) and, although they handled the Thursday-Sunday-Thursday-Sunday schedule superbly in the first half of the season, the impact of their ongoing Europa League commitments threatens to weigh much more heavily now.”

Manchester United 3-1 Aston Villa

Oli’s other predictions

Burnley vs Bournemouth

Bournemouth are ninth in the Premier League, on course to match the highest finish in their history, but they will be kicking themselves after allowing precious points to slip through their fingers in the past three matches against West Ham, Sunderland and Brentford. Goals have been harder to come by for them since selling Antoine Semenyo to Manchester City in early January, but Burnley have adopted more of a do-or-die approach in recent weeks — more die than do, sadly — which hints at an open game.

Burnley 1-2 Bournemouth

Sunderland vs Brighton

If Brighton coach Fabian Hurzeler is still frustrated by the amount of time Arsenal’s players spend over their goal kicks, throw-ins, free kicks and corner kicks — and I’m with you on that, Fabian — he might not enjoy this trip to the Stadium of Light. It’s a league-wide epidemic, and Sunderland, such a breath of air in so many other ways this season post-promotion, are among the prime exponents. Their 1-0 win at Leeds last time out was a masterclass in eating up time. Hurzeler had better hope his lads don’t fall behind.

Sunderland 1-0 Brighton

Chelsea vs Newcastle

In a terrible week for English clubs in the Champions League, Newcastle emerged with credit. They were excellent against Barcelona, unfortunate to have a first-leg lead cancelled out by a stoppage-time penalty, and now Eddie Howe must decide whether to go strong away to Chelsea on Saturday or rest players ahead of Wednesday’s second leg in the Camp Nou. Chelsea counterpart Liam Rosenior has a similar dilemma — and with the unforgiving Wednesday-Saturday-Tuesday schedule to contend with — but, 5-2 down to Paris Saint-Germain after the away leg of their Champions League last-16 tie and with a battle to secure a place in next season's competition, he should prioritise Premier League points.

Chelsea 2-1 Newcastle

Arsenal vs Everton

Everton’s away record demands respect, but this is such a great opportunity for Arsenal. Victory on Saturday evening would take them 10 points clear at the top of the table, albeit having played two games more than Manchester City, who visit West Ham immediately afterwards. Arsenal, like Chelsea and City, have that horrible Wednesday-Saturday-Tuesday schedule to contend with. But even more than City, they have the strength in depth to deal with it.

Arsenal 2-0 Everton

West Ham vs Manchester City

City have played nine Premier League games at London Stadium since West Ham moved there in 2016: seven wins, two draws, 28 goals scored, six conceded. That tells you something about their quality over the past decade — and something about West Ham’s struggles to make the place feel like home. But I have a thing about how certain stadiums are totally different atmosphere-wise if you play in them at night, as City will on Saturday. West Ham have had terrible results in evening kick-offs at home this season, but the spirited 1-1 draw with Manchester United last month underlined what I’m getting at. I’ll predict a City win, but it’s going to be a real test. They can’t afford to drift towards Tuesday’s Champions League second leg at home against Real Madrid.

West Ham 1-2 Manchester City

Crystal Palace vs Leeds

Ah, here we are. Out-of-form hosts vs in-form visitors. It is surprising to see — and feels almost indecent to point out — that Palace, after a period of drift, have taken twice as many points (10 to Leeds' five) from the past six games. That illustrates how hard it is for promoted teams, like Leeds, to sustain the kind of results that took them out of the relegation zone. They are still in a dogfight, despite losing just four of their past 16 league games. If they’re going to get the wins they need — and I think they will — it is more likely to happen at Elland Road.

Crystal Palace 2-1 Leeds

Nottingham Forest vs Fulham

That highly impressive draw at City last time out was so important for Forest — great for new coach Vitor Pereira to get a point on the board after back-to-back defeats — but they need to start winning games, particularly at home, where they’ve had just three victories out of 14 this season. It’s another very quick turnaround for Forest after a Europa League last-16 first leg on Thursday. They have to try to overcome that apparent disadvantage against a Fulham team who have only Premier League points to play for over the next two months after a limp FA Cup exit last weekend at home to Championship side Southampton.

Nottingham Forest 2-1 Fulham

Liverpool vs Tottenham

As inconsistent and unreliable as Liverpool have been for much of this season, I struggle to see anything other than a home win here. It’s not because of Tottenham’s terrible record at Anfield (four league wins since 1912). It’s because getting a result at Liverpool, even this season, requires a team to dig in and show levels of resilience and fight that appear to be totally beyond this Tottenham side. Igor Tudor was hired last month based on his ability to make an immediate impact. So far, it just isn't happening and, with injuries and suspensions piling up, this one could get ugly for Spurs.

Liverpool 3-0 Tottenham

Brentford vs Wolves

After all the talk of potentially breaking that unwanted record of the worst Premier League season (set by Derby County with just 11 points in 2007-08), Wolves now look like they mean business. Surely (surely) it is too late to avoid relegation, but they have a chance of avoiding the wooden spoon, having moved within three points of second-bottom Burnley. That said, their next three games — indeed, five of their remaining eight games — are away from home. It’s hard to look beyond a Brentford win here.

Brentford 2-0 Wolves

Welcome back to The Athletic’s relegation-battle update, where our data and tactics writers take a weekly look at the key trends behind the scrap for Premier League survival.

While Arsenal could pull away from Manchester City in the race for the title, the tussle at the bottom looks set to go down to the wire, and with Tottenham Hotspur’s position more precarious than ever after their home defeat by Crystal Palace, it has never felt so compelling.

How realistic is a Spurs relegation? Will West Ham United’s newfound momentum propel them out of trouble? Could Leeds United be sucked back into danger? Let The Athletic run through the data.

What has changed since last time?

Quite a lot, but the most attention-grabbing development is that Tottenham, having hovered on the periphery for weeks, have now joined the relegation party in earnest. They are the only side in the division still without a Premier League win in 2026, and the graphic below shows how that miserable form has left them treading drop-zone water. Last Thursday’s 3-1 loss to visitors Crystal Palace means they are now just a point above 18th-placed West Ham.

For the first time since matchweek one, Spurs no longer have that four-point cushion that allowed them to lose without slipping into the bottom three. Compounding matters, they picked up yet another suspension as Micky van de Ven was sent off for hauling back Ismaila Sarr, conceding the penalty that led to Palace’s equaliser.

The Dutch centre-back now misses Sunday’s daunting trip to Liverpool. At least his defensive partner Cristian Romero has completed a four-match suspension, although he is now a doubt after a nasty clash of heads with team-mate Joao Palhinha in their 5-2 Champions League defeat by Atletico Madrid on Tuesday, with worries that both could miss the game at Anfield with concussion.

“Everything is going against us,” said interim Tottenham head coach Igor Tudor after that loss in Spain. It may be about to get a lot worse.

Meanwhile, Nottingham Forest’s excellent point at Manchester City was crucial in keeping them from dropping into the relegation zone. City were unsurprisingly dominant, but goals from Morgan Gibbs-White and Elliot Anderson showed the quality in the visitors’ squad. Without that draw, a resurgent West Ham would have leapfrogged Forest in the table after victory over Fulham — which leads us perfectly into…

Who is looking stronger?

Coupled with Tottenham’s slip-and-slide, a notable upturn in form for West Ham saw them reduce their chances of relegation by 23.5 per cent according to Opta’s renowned supercomputer.

Their 1-0 victory at Craven Cottage last time out felt like a statement win for Nuno Espirito Santo’s side, as Jarrod Bowen pounced on a breakdown in communication between goalkeeper Bernd Leno and centre-back Calvin Bassey, laying the ball off for Crysencio Summerville to score.

Though they were fortunate in how that goal came about, the signs are good for West Ham, who are looking more like a Nuno side with each passing week following his early-season appointment. Looking at 2026 alone, their points haul is good enough for ninth place across the Premier League, showing they are playing more like a mid-table side than relegation strugglers.

The Portuguese is famed for his defensively organised, counter-attacking sides; since the start of April last year, no team has completed fewer passes than West Ham, but only three (Arsenal, Chelsea and Brighton & Hove Albion) have conceded fewer expected goals (xG).

We can see that defensive improvement on the rolling xG ribbon chart below, where, for the first time in over two seasons, West Ham are creating more goalscoring opportunities (blue line) than they are conceding across their latest 10 games.

An encouraging display in the FA Cup to eliminate Brentford kept the good mood going on Monday, and although the visit of title-chasing Manchester City this weekend may feel a little daunting, they only have the Premier League to focus on — unlike Tottenham, who have at least the return leg against Atletico on the calendar — as they look to climb out of the bottom three for the first time since early December.

Another side on the up are Wolves, though their good run of recent form will probably be too little, too late.

With victory over Aston Villa and a dramatic late win against Liverpool, the Premier League’s bottom side have beaten two of the top six in consecutive games, while also taking a point against leaders Arsenal three weeks ago. Intriguingly, coach Rob Edwards can now look forward to the easiest upcoming schedule, per Opta’s power rankings, facing West Ham, Leeds and Tottenham — all in the bottom six — as well as out-of-form Sunderland between now and the start of May.

Wolves’ chances of survival remain slim: 0.02 per cent according to Opta’s algorithm. Win your next two as well lads, then we’ll talk.

Who has the tougher upcoming schedule?

West Ham may have the momentum, but Tottenham and Forest have — on paper at least — the more forgiving upcoming fixtures. Few give Spurs a hope on Sunday against Liverpool. Their 1-1 draw in May 2022 is the only time they have avoided defeat in their past eight league visits to Anfield. Beyond this seemingly hopeless trip to Merseyside though, their next four matches come against fellow bottom-half sides, including a huge crunch home date with Forest next Sunday.

Forest, for their part, have the easiest schedule based on the Opta Power Rankings of their next five opponents, starting with the visit of Fulham on Sunday. The west Londoners sit 10th and appear to be meandering towards another mid-table finish. Pereira’s side should possess the motivational edge, even if Fulham still have distant hopes of qualifying for European football.

Elsewhere, West Ham face a tough home game against title-challengers Manchester City on Saturday night, before a trip to fourth-place Aston Villa the weekend after. It is a tricky run, but West Ham’s strong form makes them a tough proposition for any of their Premier League opponents.

Things can swing so quickly in the league table at this time of year, so do not omit Leeds from the conversation. Daniel Farke’s side have been coasting slightly in recent weeks, with two draws and two defeats in four matches showing they are losing momentum at a crucial point. They go to Crystal Palace on Sunday, then have a home game against Brentford which looks that bit trickier today than it did a few weeks ago.

What does the supercomputer say?

Leeds’ three-point cushion to the relegation zone is the healthiest among the teams here, so it is little surprise that Opta’s projections are most bullish on their survival prospects, giving them a 92.2 per cent chance of staying up. Tottenham’s 18 per cent chance of relegation is the highest it has been all season, but the Opta computer is still more confident they will steer clear than it is about the four teams beneath them.

Forest are given a 25.8 per cent chance of going down, while West Ham’s figure stands at 48.8 per cent. The algorithm has essentially abandoned any hope of a late surge to survival by Burnley and/or Wolves, with both assigned less than a one per cent possibility of completing a great escape.

Tottenham Hotspur have extended the window for supporters to renew their season tickets for the 2026-27 campaign until June 7, due to the increasing threat of relegation to the Championship.

Last month, Tottenham announced they would freeze season ticket prices for next season following consultation with supporters’ groups. At the time, Spurs sat 16th, five points above West Ham United in 18th.

But having failed to win a league game in 2026, Spurs now sit just one point away from the relegation zone with nine games remaining of the Premier League season.

In an email to season ticket-holders, Tottenham said: “As previously communicated, General Admission Season Ticket Renewals for 2026/27 open today (Thursday 12 March).

“In line with our Ticketing Charter published in March 2024, we are committed to opening renewals by no later than 15 March each year.

“We recognise the seriousness of the current league position of our men’s team and, following discussions with our Fan Advisory Board and the Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust, can confirm the renewal window for 2026/27 will now remain open for an extended period until Sunday 7 June to ensure fans have full clarity on next season before renewing.”

Renewals for the current 2025-26 season closed on May 27 last year, two days after the end of the previous campaign.

This year, supporters will have two weeks from Spurs’ final league game, the visit of Everton May 24, to decide if they want to renew their seat.

Despite eventually finishing 17th last season, Spurs’ Premier League status was all but secured by the time season ticket renewals were placed on sale last year, with a 17-point buffer between them and the relegation zone at the time.

In the published minutes detailing a meeting between Tottenham’s fan advisory board and club representatives, including chief executive Vinai Venkatesham, on March 12, the supporter representatives expressed “acknowledgement” that “there is significant concern among supporters regarding the Club’s current league position for the men’s team” and that they “indicated that fans are increasingly anxious about the possibility of the Club no longer competing in the Premier League”.

The minutes also detail that “questions were raised regarding the potential impact of relegation on ticket pricing and on communications to supporters during the renewal period”.

While season ticket prices were also frozen last year, Tottenham drew criticism from some fan groups for removing concessions for new senior season ticket holders (aged 65 and above). Restrictions placed on ticket sharing and changes to the ticket exchange system were also points of frustration for sections of the fanbase. The cheapest adult season ticket at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium costs £856, with the most expensive at £2,367.

After suffering a 5-2 defeat to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday night, Spurs are back in action in the Premier League on Sunday with a trip to face Liverpool at Anfield. They then face Atletico in the return leg of the last 16 tie on Wednesday, before hosting Nottingham Forest, who currently sit level on points with Spurs in 17th, on March 22.

Tottenham Hotspur have lost six games in a row for the first time in their 144-year history. They are only one point above the Premier League’s relegation zone while their chances of reaching the Champions League quarter-finals are hanging by a thread following Tuesday’s humiliating 5-2 defeat by Atletico Madrid.

The players look lost, bereft of confidence and powerless to stop everything from spiralling even further out of control. Expectations are low for Sunday’s game against Liverpool but a positive performance could help them to at least regain some momentum.

Spurs need their underperforming senior players to step up. Cristian Romero has been sent off multiple times and criticised the club on social media earlier this year. Micky van de Ven’s red card against Crystal Palace led to a chaotic seven-minute spell during which they conceded three times, and the Dutchman was then lucky not to be dismissed for the second game in a row for a reckless challenge on Atletico’s David Hancko. He cannot face Liverpool due to suspension, while Romero may also be unavailable after clashing heads with Joao Palhinha late in Tuesday evening’s defeat in Spain.

Guglielmo Vicario’s form in goal has been erratic, Pedro Porro looks agitated, while James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski have not played a single minute this season due to long-term knee injuries. There have also been problems off the field as The Athletic reported last month that timekeeping was an issue during Thomas Frank’s reign.

The strain of an historically bad season can be seen in this squad. Some members who are determined to arrest the team’s decline have expressed displeasure at the application of others, who they believe are not motivated to help their cause. The Athletic has even been told that one player has expressed to his team-mates that he is not too concerned by the possibility of relegation because he believes he can and will leave the club this summer.

Tottenham are drifting, and need to find leaders somewhere, or their season will end in the ignominy of a first relegation in 49 years.

Spurs have tried to sign a fair few high-profile players over the last 12 months, including Eberechi Eze, Antoine Semenyo and Morgan Gibbs-White, but missing out on Andy Robertson in the January transfer window has proven as costly as any other. Robertson would have been a natural alternative to left-back Destiny Udogie. More importantly, Robertson, who will captain Scotland at this summer’s World Cup, would have provided this squad with some much-needed leadership.

Roberton’s comments about his potential transfer offer an invaluable insight into his character. After he scored in Liverpool’s 3-1 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the fifth round of the FA Cup last week, the full-back told reporters that “my focus never came off trying to help the lads on the pitch and in training” and “I’ll be committed until I’m no longer needed.”

The defender, who turned 32 on Wednesday, has only started five league games and played a total of 633 minutes this season. He has lost his place in Arne Slot’s first-choice XI to summer signing Milos Kerkez but is determined to ensure they have a successful end to the campaign.

The body language of Tottenham’s players after they conceded four goals in 22 minutes against Atletico suggests they are in desperate need of support and would have benefited from Robertson’s attitude and know-how.

Steven Caulker spent time in Tottenham’s academy before breaking into the first team during the 2012-13 season. He made 29 appearances for Spurs in total before joining Cardiff City. Cardiff finished bottom of the Premier League in the 2013-14 campaign, before Caulker again suffered relegation from the top flight with Queens Park Rangers the following season. He highlights former Spurs captain Ledley King and Portugal international Jose Fonte as two leaders who could unite squads in difficult circumstances.

“Form is temporary but you can control the way you behave and carry yourself,” Caulker, who is now an assistant coach at Turkish top-flight side Konyaspor, tells The Athletic. “I played with Jose Fonte at Southampton and he was a top professional. He was the first one in (to the training ground) and the last one out. He put an arm around you when you weren’t playing but wasn’t afraid to have a word with you if standards dropped. That created an environment where others could blossom.

“Ledley led by example. Sometimes he couldn’t train because of his knee but he would be in the gym every single day. He had a calming and reassuring presence about him. It’s not about screaming and shouting. It’s about their everyday behaviour and how they treat everybody from the cleaner to the head coach. They earn respect and back it up on the pitch. When your captain is picking up red cards, it puts him in a difficult position where players question that side of his game.

“At Cardiff, we had good leaders but we switched managers midway through the year to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and we just weren’t good enough to play the way he wanted us to. At QPR, we had a good squad but lacked unity and that created a split dressing room which cost us on the pitch. You need to strip it back to basics, drop the ego and accept the position you are in.”

Danny Higginbotham made over 200 Premier League appearances during his career across spells with Manchester United, Derby County, Southampton, Sunderland and Stoke City. He was involved in multiple relegation battles and believes having the right mindset is key.

“Everybody is looking for guidance but these players haven’t been in this situation before,” the former centre-back says. “Leeds United knew their aim for this season was survival and that there might be times where they don’t win for a month. They have to change their mindset from a group of players who had aspirations to finish in the top six at the start of the season to just fighting and scrapping for their lives but what experience do they have to lean on?”

Interim head coach Igor Tudor has stuck with a back three in all four of his games in charge but has experimented with players in different positions. Palhinha has been moved from central midfield to defence, Conor Gallagher has operated out wide, Archie Gray has been shifted from right wing-back to left wing-back and Porro started as the right-sided centre-back against Palace.

Dan Abrahams is a sports psychologist who has worked with teams and individual athletes around the world. Abrahams believes it is “critical” that everybody understands their responsibilities but encouraging individuals instead of highlighting their mistakes can help them to perform better.

“Humans have doubts, worries and fears,” Abrahams says. “Everybody is a little bit different and that is what coaching is about. To get players on board, you need to sit down with as many of them as possible and quickly get to know them. Watching footage, highlighting strengths, pinpointing areas to improve and communicating how you are going to help them builds trust and it becomes apparent you are on their side.”

Tudor has criticised Spurs’ squad publicly on multiple occasions. After the defeat by Palace, he said: “I need to choose the right guys because the boat is going in the direction that I want to go and needs to go and who is in the boat can stay. Otherwise, they can bow down, or how do you say that, leave the boat.”

Caulker believes publicly calling out players can prompt a positive reaction but it is a risky approach. “I’ve been in dressing rooms where I have thought, ‘It’s about time people stopped protecting players who aren’t on board and don’t deserve it and I’m glad he called it out’,” Caulker says.

“If everyone is onside but they are just out of form and the manager says something like that, then you have completely lost the dressing room straight away. It is a big call (for Tudor) to make without any results so he has nothing to back that up with. When you make statements like that, it leaves you isolated and judging by the result (against Atletico) it hasn’t worked.”

Higginbotham agrees that the best approach is for managers and senior players to “keep calm”.

“You need to be a man manager,” Higginbotham says. “Players are exploding on the pitch because things are not going according to plan and they don’t know how to fix it. When people say this Tottenham squad doesn’t care, I understand that argument but I think these players have zero idea of what they are doing.

“This is a group of players which includes World Cup finalists. They are not used to being in a relegation scrap. People say it’s tough at the top but it is even worse at the bottom. You have to keep players’ confidence high if they haven’t won for five weeks.”

Spurs’ club-record signing Dominic Solanke revealed the players had a “big conversation” in the dressing room following the Palace defeat. Romero could be seen shouting at his team-mates after Julian Alvarez gave Atletico a 3-0 lead. Higginbotham recalls having “heated arguments” with his team-mates at Stoke to hold each other to account.

“The difference is it wasn’t blaming each other,” he says. “Everybody has to be together. It wasn’t finger-pointing and saying to someone, ‘You are not running or good enough.’ Spurs have some incredible individual players but they are not working as a team. Against Palace, when one head dropped, the rest of them did. That is the sign of a team that is ready to combust, which has fragile confidence. If that is a team ready for a relegation fight, you go over to your team-mate and say, ‘Keep your head up’.”

There has been a disconnect between the players and the fanbase for the majority of the season, which has not helped the situation. One of the biggest flashpoints came in November when Van de Ven and Djed Spence walked straight down the tunnel without acknowledging the supporters after a 1-0 defeat at home by rivals Chelsea.

A few weeks later, Vicario was booed by sections of the crowd after making a costly error in the build-up to Harry Wilson’s winner for Fulham. Porro and Van de Ven appeared to clash with the away fans following January’s defeat by Bournemouth. The fans are, understandably, venting their frustration at the prospect of Spurs being relegated for the first time since 1977.

Speaking to Dutch broadcaster Ziggo Sport after Tuesday’s match, Van de Ven explained that he no longer looked at social media due to the strain of recent months. “I’m not on my phone anymore,” he said. “I’m completely done with it. Only family and stuff.”

He also described Tuesday’s match as “a doomsday scenario”.

“When a big club finds themselves in a position where they can be relegated, the situation becomes catastrophised,” Abrahams says. “There is so much noise in modern football. There’s no getting away from it for the players. That can make a big difference to the ability of good players to execute technically, tactically, physically. All these things can be impacted, which is why a great team can falter and fail.”

Igor Tudor used “fragile” and “weak” in his post-match press conference. Inept, embarrassing, or dreadful also work. You’d be hard-pressed to find a team in Europe that is performing further below expectations than Tottenham Hotspur right now, but against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday night their floor somehow caved in again.

Tudor announced before the game that, in Tottenham’s desperate state, the Premier League would take precedence over the Champions League — the one competition where Spurs have not been totally calamitous this term. In publicly prioritising their Premier League status — which is growing ever more perilous by the week — Tudor allowed himself to experiment. It could be the last time the boardroom let him cook.

Goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky was handed his first start since October in place of Guglielmo Vicario, an underperforming squad leader. The 17 minutes he played before he was substituted are ones he won’t ever forget, confirming Vicario’s undisputed place in goal for the remainder of the season by default. Sandwiched either side of an equally calamitous slip by Micky van de Ven, allowing Antoine Griezmann in for Atletico’s second, mishit passes by Kinsky led to two easy goals for the hosts — putting them far out of sight before they had the opportunity to attempt to gain a foothold.

A fourth was added soon after, with Pape Matar Sarr misdirecting his header towards Vicario, drawing a good save from the Italian, before Robin Le Normand converted the rebound.

“I’ve been coaching 15 years, I’ve never done this thing,” Tudor said in his post-match press conference, referring to substituting his goalkeeper. “It was necessary to preserve the guy, preserve the team. Incredible situation. Nothing to comment. It was, before the game, the right choice to do in the moment like we are. Pressure on Vicario. Another competition. Toni is a very good goalkeeper. It was, for me, the right decision. After happened this, of course, it’s easy to say that it was not right decision. So I explained to Toni speaking after. He’s a right guy and good goalkeeper, unfortunately happened in this big game, these mistakes.”

According to former Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel, speaking on CBS Sports, it was a “moment that everybody in football will always remember every time they see or hear his name”. On TNT Joe Hart slammed Tudor’s lack of humanity in failing even to acknowledge Kinsky, who will turn 23 on Friday, as he left the pitch. Paul Robinson described it as “selfish” on BBC Radio 5 Live, claiming that Tudor, the supposed specialist firefighter, was acting in “self-preservation”.

Aside from his employment, it’s hard to imagine Tudor wants to preserve anything from his dire 24-day, four-game spell as Tottenham head coach. And when asked whether he is the right man for that job, one he faces incessant questioning on his suitability for a role he has yet to show any promise in, he replied “no comment”. Words, he realises, count for precious little without substance.

Similar questions should be asked of those who hired him. Tudor has a reputation for improving faltering clubs on the continent, but it’s becoming increasingly apparent with every exasperated attempt to make sense of Tottenham’s “amazing” situation that he underestimated, or was undersold, the extent of the challenge.

And misplacing long-term planning over the club’s pressing short-term needs no longer stands up to scrutiny. For that, sporting director Johan Lange, chief executive Vinai Venkatesham and the controlling Lewis family, headed by Nick Beucher and Vivienne Lewis, bear responsibility.

Had they acted after Mohammed Kudus sustained a hamstring injury on January 4, perhaps Ademola Lookman, who started for Atletico and assisted their opening goal, might have been a Tottenham player. Had they identified the immediate, pressing need for a midfield playmaker, perhaps Spurs would have been more successful in keeping the ball.

This inaction, not just in January but over several windows and key junctures, is more to blame for the collapse at the Metropolitano than the hapless Tudor’s choice to give Kinsky a go.

Yet it’s the Croatian who seems most likely to be heading for the exit door in the immediate future. With Tottenham sitting 16th in the Premier League, just one point above the relegation zone, the decision to stick or twist has rarely, if ever, had greater consequences. Tudor appears out of ideas at a time when Tottenham need them most, but, given the circumstances, the list of possible alternatives is significantly shorter than the long line of injured players they will have to make do without.

One of their unavailable players is Van de Ven, whose red card in the 3-1 defeat to Crystal Palace rules him out of the trip to Anfield to face Liverpool on Sunday. He might be joined on the sidelines by Joao Palhinha and Cristian Romero, who both finished the game off the pitch after colliding heads in injury time.

Losing Romero, who played his first game since earning a four-match ban for a second red card due to a late tackle on Manchester United midfielder Casemiro, for any more than the trip to Liverpool would be a hammer blow, with a true relegation six-pointer coming up against Nottingham Forest the following weekend.

Because if Tudor has got anything right as Tottenham coach, it’s that the Champions League didn’t matter before the 5-2 defeat on Tuesday, and definitely doesn’t matter now.

Tottenham have lost six games in a row for the first time in their history, and can hardly afford to lose many more — but they’d surely trade another sound beating next Wednesday for four points in their next two Premier League matches in a heartbeat.

There are many things this match will be remembered for. The goals, the errors, the disbelief that Tottenham Hotspur could be 4-0 down within 22 minutes. But mainly, it will be for the sight of goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky walking down the tunnel, a comforting hand over his shoulder, after he was brutally substituted in the 17th minute after two calamitous slips.

Kinsky’s Champions League debut went horribly wrong, leaving Tottenham not only needing to overcome a 5-2 deficit in the second leg against Atletico Madrid but also likely facing an inquisition over head coach Igor Tudor’s call to haul off his 22-year-old goalkeeper.

At fault for the first and third goals, Kinsky looked devastated. A slip allowed the home team to work the ball to Marcos Llorente, who lasered a first-time shot into the bottom-left corner in the sixth minute. After a Micky van de Ven slip had led to Antoine Griezmann’s goal and Atletico’s second, Kinsky botched clearing a back pass a minute later to give Julian Alvarez the easiest of chances.

Worse was to come as Robin Le Normand scored from a rebound after substitute goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario had initially made a great save. But Atletico are yet to keep a clean sheet in this Champions League campaign and with Pedro Porro’s 26th-minute goal, there was hope. But then came the second half and a sublime Atletico goal.

An unmarked Richarlison forced a save from Jan Oblak but Atletico’s lightning-quick counter-attack, which included a sumptuous Griezmann back heel, culminated in Alvarez putting the hosts 5-1 ahead. Dominic Solanke reduced the deficit but Atletico will take a handsome lead into the second leg as Tudor became the first Spurs head coach to lose their opening four games.

Elias Burke, Jay Harris and Dermot Corrigan analyse an incredible match at the Estadio Metropolitano.

Should Kinsky have been substituted?

With Vicario failing to convince Tudor that he should be Tottenham’s undisputed No 1, Kinsky’s first start since October had been rumoured for several weeks. And with Tudor suggesting the Champions League offers the opportunity for experimentation in his pre-match press conference, Kinsky was given the chance to prove he could step up.

But having been at fault for two of Atletico’s opening three goals, he was on his way down the tunnel after a calamitous 16 minutes that he won’t forget easily.

Distribution has been touted as one of Kinsky’s biggest strengths. In his run as starting goalkeeper in Vicario’s absence last season, his ability to play short, medium and long passes was clear. But after mis-kicking an attempted chipped ball over the Atletico press, leading to Llorente’s opening goal, it would have been advisable to take the Vicario approach — eliminate risk and send the ball long — at least until he had the opportunity to rebuild confidence in his passing.

But after another howler in possession, allowing Alvarez to tap what has to be the easiest goal he will ever score, Tudor had enough, replacing him with the Italian without offering any sympathy or support as he left the pitch.

It was a decision received with jeers by the Atletico faithful — but don’t think they were expressing solidarity with the Spurs goalkeeper. Every time Vicario touched the ball, Atletico fans whistled loudly, hoping he would make a similar mistake.

Half of the Spurs bench followed Kinsky down the tunnel, presumably offering words of comfort. For better or worse, the shirt now unquestionably belongs to Vicario, and Tudor’s biggest experiment yet proved a miserable failure.

Elias Burke

How did Spurs concede four goals so quickly?

Spurs imploded for the second time in six days. They conceded three goals in 13 minutes during last week’s defeat against Crystal Palace but went a step further in the Spanish capital and found themselves 4-0 down after 22 minutes.

Their collapse was triggered by Kinsky’s initial slip. He received a pass inside his own box from Cristian Romero but slipped as he struck the ball with his right foot and it bounced off his left, straight to Ademola Lookman. The ball ended up with Llorente, who drilled a shot into the bottom corner

This squad does not know how to respond to setbacks and the situation spiralled from there. Somehow, even though they lined up with a back five, holes were popping up throughout their defence.

Atletico’s second goal encapsulated everything wrong with this side. A simple long ball forward caused chaos as Djed Spence mistimed his header and then slipped before Pape Matar Sarr was weak in his duel with Llorente. Van de Ven slipped and Griezmann rolled the ball past Kinsky.

Kinsky’s second mistake presented Alvarez with one of the easiest goals he will ever score. Kinsky received a back pass from Van de Ven under no pressure but his left-footed pass towards Kevin Danso bounced off his right foot straight to the unmarked Alvarez, who had an open goal to aim for.

The goalkeeper, who turns 23 on Friday, was substituted afterwards, adding to the drama. It felt like interim head coach Tudor had just completely broken Kinsky by handing him his Champions League debut and then dragging him off so quickly.

The brutal sequence was completed in the 22nd minute when Vicario made a good save from a free kick but Le Normand pounced on the rebound. It was the end of the goals but the damage could have been much worse. Van de Ven escaped punishment for a rash challenge on David Hancko and Llorente fired wide from a great position inside the box.

Jay Harris

Is the tie over?

Atletico were aware of Tottenham’s struggles in the Premier League but their coach, Diego Simeone, said before the game that he did not see his own side as favourites in the tie, pointing to Spurs’ fourth-place finish in the league phase.

But things very quickly went in Atletico’s favour as they took advantage of Spurs’ complete defensive collapse. At 4-0 up, most observers — and the players on the pitch — must have thought the tie was over. But Simeone’s temper flared when poor collective defending allowed right-back Porro to pull one back for Tottenham within four minutes.

After half-time, Atletico ‘keeper Oblak was sharp to parry Richarlison’s header, and seconds later, Griezmann’s sublime touch sent Alvarez haring away behind the Tottenham defence. The former Manchester City striker calmly carried the ball clear and finished for 5-1.

That appeared to be that, but then Oblak passed the ball straight to Porro, leading to Solanke’s goal.

Simeone and his players should need no reminding that Atletico were 4-0 up by half-time against Barcelona in their recent Copa del Rey semi-final first leg, only to end up hanging on for a 4-3 aggregate victory after conceding three times in the return at the Camp Nou.

Given all Tottenham’s problems, Simeone’s side should still progress from next week’s second leg. But he will still be making sure between now and then that nobody thinks the tie is over yet.

Dermot Corrigan

What will Spurs do now?

Tudor, who replaced Thomas Frank on an interim basis, was supposed to stabilise the team and make them defensively solid.

But Spurs have lost all four games with him in charge — a club first. The decision-makers need to accept he was the wrong choice and sack him before it is too late.

Tudor has persisted with a variation of a 3-4-3 system in every match. Archie Gray has bounced from right wing-back to left wing-back to central midfield. Xavi Simons and Conor Gallagher have been left on the bench.

He has handled the squad poorly and it is no surprise the players are making erratic decisions on the pitch. The 47-year-old’s decision to haul off Kinsky, without even acknowledging him, was brutal.

The pressure and scrutiny also need to be cranked up on sporting director Johan Lange and chief executive officer Vinai Venkatesham. Tudor is the wrong fit but much of the blame should land on the people who hired him.

What did Tudor say?

We will bring you this after he has spoken at the post-match press conference.

What next for Spurs?

Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky was substituted after just 17 minutes of their Champions League last-16 first leg against Atletico Madrid after his mistakes led to two goals for the home side.

Kinsky was a surprise pick in the starting XI ahead of Spurs’ usual No 1 Guglielmo Vicario, making his first appearance since October.

The 22-year-old was hauled off by Spurs interim head coach Igor Tudor before the 20 minute mark, however, with Spurs already trailing 3-0 and the goalkeeper at fault for Atletico’s first and third goals.

Only three goalkeepers have been substituted earlier in Champions League history, the most recent of which being Peter Gulacsi for RB Leipzig in 2022.

For U.S. viewers:

After just six minutes, Kinsky slipped while taking a goal kick, gifting the home side possession on the edge of the box, and Marcos Llorente finished from Julian Alvarez’s pass to open the scoring.

Kinsky’s second mistake came as he mis-kicked a simple back pass, allowing Alvarez to effectively walk the ball into the empty net.

Tudor immediately called for the benched Vicario, and Kinsky was applauded off the pitch by the majority of the Wanda Metropolitano. The goalkeeper headed straight down the tunnel with no acknowledgement from his coach.

Within minutes, Vicario had conceded Spurs’ fourth, with Robin Le Normand nodding over the line after the Italian had made a sharp save.

Pedro Porro pulled one back for Spurs a few minutes later to make it 4-1 and give the visitors a degree of hope.

How did the football world react?

“It broke my heart,” former Manchester City and England goalkeeper Joe Hart said to TNT. “He’s had a bad 14 minutes, there’s no getting away from it.

“Even the stadium is feeling sorry for him. Tudor doesn’t even acknowledge his goalie. If that’s man management, then I’m flabbergasted. He’s acting like that isn’t the 14th minute. That doesn’t happen at any level. Not even Sunday League.”

Steve McManaman echoed Hart’s reaction on the same coverage: “That’s man management at its very worst. He’s managed not to even acknowledge him … that is cold as cold can be.”

“I blame the manager,” Jamie Carragher said on Paramount. “He put him there. He’s as much at fault as anyone.”

“No one who hasn’t been a goalkeeper can understand how difficult it is to play in this position,” Fiorentina and former Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea said on social media. “Keep your head up and you will go again.”

A disastrous collapse

Analysis by Tottenham Hotspur correspondent Elias Burke

The Atletico faithful were in full voice well before kick-off, but by the time Julian Alvarez put their team three ahead inside 15 minutes, thanks to calamitous mistakes from Antonin Kinsky and Micky van de Ven, the Metropolitano reached fever pitch.

Understandably, the travelling Tottenham support stood motionless in the top tier above the Spurs goal, in complete disbelief in how Spurs had collapsed so disastrously, all entirely of their own doing.

Then, when Igor Tudor substituted Kinsky — who was making his first start since the 2-0 defeat to Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup — the Atletico crowd whistled the decision. And if anyone may have thought it was in solidarity with the Czech goalkeeper, Atletico then loudly whistled Guglielmo Vicario every time he touched the ball, hoping he’d make a similar mistake.