BBC

Travelling across a sweltering London to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium by Tube on the final day of the season, the emotional divide among football fans in the city was striking. Sitting opposite me in the carriage, a man in his 50s wearing a 90s original "Holsten" home shirt was wedged between two Arsenal supporters.

"I think you'll be all right today, mate," they offered.

Now I know you don't speak to strangers on the Tube if you're a Londoner, but this Spurs fan just stared straight ahead, entirely consumed by the dread and anxiety that they could be relegated on the same day that Arsenal were crowned champions. He didn't even acknowledge them.

There was a hush around the ground on arrival - very few smiles, very little noise. That was until the team bus turned up and the players were greeted as if it was them that had won the Premier League title and not their north London rivals.

Inside the ground, the wall of noise before kick-off was deafening. The relief at Joao Palhinha's goal palpable. The West Ham goals against Leeds filtered through to add some jeopardy, but Everton never really offered enough until late on to make it truly nerve-wracking inside the stadium.

Spurs' players collapsed with a mixture of exhaustion and relief at the final whistle, and the South Stand became a wall of noise once again.

The concourses, now doubling as bustling bars, were now buzzing - smiles, laughter, singing, drinking and general merriment.

The journey home saw the Victoria Line trains mixed with red and white shirts as triumphant Arsenal fans returned from south London to launch an impromptu street party around Emirates Stadium. Fans chanted at each other as they passed on the escalators, but what I saw was good humoured.

It was one city and three entirely different sets of emotions for the supporters of the teams involved on an afternoon in the capital not to be forgotten.

De Zerbi couldn't wait to see one journalist

De Zerbi couldn't wait to see one journalist

Tottenham Hotspur manager Roberto de Zerbi could not wait to see one journalist after confirming their place in the Premier League next season with a 1-0 win against Everton on the final day.

Former captain Gary Mabbutt hopes Ben Davies will have a future at Tottenham Hotspur after the club avoided relegation to the Championship.

Wales skipper Davies, who turned 33 last month, sees his Tottenham contract expire next month.

The defender has not played since suffering a serious ankle injury in January, but Mabbutt believes he should be offered the chance to stay at a club he has represented for 12 years.

"Ben's a great lad," said Spurs great Mabbutt.

"What he has given to the club so far… it was just so unfortunate the injury he received. It was devastating for him and or us because Ben's a player you can always rely on.

Former Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney, speaking about Roberto de Zerbi keeping Tottenham up on Match of the Day: "I think the Igor Tudor appointment was a strange one and everyone felt that but De Zerbi has come in and it feels right. It feels right for Tottenham. There seems to be a really good connection with the players and supporters as well.

"He's done his job, he's kept them in the Premier League, and I think going into next season with a few additions to that squad - he could get them back to where you'd expect Tottenham to be.

"I think Tottenham are an interesting club and if they get the recruitment right, they have some good players in there there's no denying that. If they get the recruitment right with this manager I think they can be driving up the table."

Strains of the old 'Glory, Glory' anthem echoed inside the giant stadium as Tottenham stepped back from the precipice of the most humiliating relegation in Premier League history.

The players and supporters were in unison at last, as they could finally look forward to next season as a top-flight club.

Slowly, a note of dissent was introduced as a giant banner was unfurled by supporters, reading: 'Promised Success. Delivering Failure. ENIC out.'

The fans who have suffered so much mediocrity were entitled to their outpouring. After all, this was only the third home league win they have witnessed this season, albeit in arguably the club's biggest game in recent history.

The instant exuberance from the players was understandable, but embarrassment should have quickly descended on them as they listened to their supporters chanting: 'We are staying up'.

The very sound of those words - the preserve of strugglers - should reverberate through the whole club.

Once Tottenham High Road empties of its revellers, the inquest from top to bottom must begin.

The club's top brass were in attendance for the conclusion, with chief executive Vinai Venkatesham front of house and sporting director Johan Lange sitting just behind.

Their part in all of this will come under scrutiny, not least for their remarkable decision to trust ill-suited Igor Tudor as successor to Thomas Frank.

The season finale was also watched by Vivienne Lewis, representing the family who own Spurs, along with her son-in-law Nick Beucher, a key contact with the London-based management.

Non-executive chairman Peter Charrington and chief operating and finance officer Matthew Collecott were also in attendance, presumably poised to work out how and why the club found themselves in such reduced circumstances and how it can be avoided next season.

For now, thanks to Roberto de Zerbi's inspiration and the failings of other clubs, Spurs are spared a day of reckoning.

Not for long, however, because the temporary elation of fans will soon turn to anger.

How can a club that plays in such a magnificent stadium, has such passionate support, and has received around £74m by qualifying for the Champions League via that Europa League triumph, end up on the brink of the Championship?

Answer: bad decisions on and off the pitch, poor appointments and players playing poorly.

Glory, Glory Tottenham Hotspur? Not this season, no glory here.

Tottenham have moved their attention away from 32-year-old Roma striker Paulo Dybala, who won the World Cup with Argentina in 2022. (Football Insider), external

Fenerbahce are monitoring the situation of France international Randal Kolo Muani, 27, with the forward on loan this season at Tottenham from Paris St-Germain. (Fanatik), external

Tottenham club captain Cristian Romero, 28, would be interested in linking up with fellow Argentinian Diego Simeone at Atletico Madrid. (Teamtalk), external

Tottenham are considering a move for Benfica's Ukrainian goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin, 24, in the summer. (A Bola - in Portuguese), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Monday's full gossip column

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We asked for your thoughts and feelings as Tottenham avoided relegation to the Championship on the final day of the season.

Here are some of your comments:

Ricky: There's a time for post-mortems, analysis and frustration with the board, but it's not today. The boys did us proud. COYS!

Robert: A mixture of exhilaration and relief. We were by far the better team in the first half, and fully deserved the one-goal lead. Second half, we got deeper and deeper and the nerves were plain for all to see. But we got over the line, and that's all that matters. Now, the real work starts to make sure this situation never happens again.

Jeff: A diabolical season. Being 17th for the second year running is just unacceptable and speaks to years of utter incompetence in leadership, ownership, management and recruitment. To borrow a phrase, it's time to "drain the swamp". There needs to be a cull of senior management and we need to get rid of all the dross and malcontents in the playing squad. Simple as that.

Michele: They truly do not deserve to have been saved. Lifelong Spurs fan, but this season has pushed me to the edge. An embarrassment and can now only hope someone somewhere has learned a massive lesson. Have a clearout. Do what is necessary and spend, spend, spend or we will surely be in the same position next year.

Chris: Now is the time to look at the coaching and medical staff. The injuries the team has suffered both this season and last can't be all down to bad luck. Something is seriously wrong on the fitness side of the team.

Brian: Relief that we will have a chance to reset and we already have a top coach in place to oversee it. A pair of outsiders deserve maximum credit for our survival. Joao Palhinha scored the two most important goals of the season. Antonin Kinsky's rebirth continued with another fine save. Some changes needed, but who cares right now?

Match of the Day - 2025/26 Highlights: Tottenham Hotspur v Everton Highlights  BBC

Strains of the old "Glory, Glory" anthem echoed inside the giant stadium as Tottenham Hotspur stepped back from the precipice of the most humiliating relegation in Premier League history.

Spurs players and supporters were in unison at last as they could finally look forward to next season as a top-flight club, victory against Everton on the final day ensuring survival and sending West Ham United into the Championship.

Slowly, a note of dissent was introduced as a giant banner was unfurled by supporters, reading: "Promised Success. Delivering Failure. ENIC out."

The fans who have suffered so much mediocrity were entitled to their outpouring – after all, this was only the third home league win they have witnessed this season, albeit in arguably the club's biggest game in recent history.

For the Spurs players, the instant exuberance was understandable, but embarrassment should have quickly descended on them as they listened to their supporters chanting "We Are Staying Up".

The very sound of those words, the preserve of strugglers, should reverberate through the whole club. Once Tottenham High Road empties of its revellers, the inquest from top to bottom must begin.

The fist-pumping defiance from those who have performed so poorly, with Spurs finishing 17th for the second successive season, could have been avoided had they pitched up and performed earlier in this wretched campaign.

Spurs had been warned. Cracks were covered up by last season's Europa League win, which was followed by Ange Postecoglou's sacking, but they were soon exposed once more when this season begin.

The club's top brass were in attendance for the conclusion – whatever it held – with chief executive Vinai Venkatesham front of house and sporting director Johan Lange sitting just behind.

Their part in all of this will come under scrutiny, not least for their remarkable decision to trust the ill-suited Igor Tudor as successor to Thomas Frank.

Frank had been sacked after eight months. Tudor was out of the door in 44 days following five defeats in seven games.

This brings us to the move they did get right, which was to persuade Roberto de Zerbi to arrive in an emergency act before the end of the season, rather than wait to see what division Spurs were in before making a commitment.

De Zerbi, by his own admission, has had to be as much a psychologist as coach to coax Spurs to survival. He has done so and deserves credit, with away wins at Wolverhampton Wanderers and Aston Villa, plus this tension-riddled win against Everton, enough to get them over the line.

This celebratory end to a season was also watched by Vivienne Lewis, representing the family who own Spurs, along with her son-in-law Nick Beucher, a key contact with the London-based management.

Non-executive chairman Peter Charrington and chief operating and finance officer Matthew Collecott were also in attendance, presumably poised to work out how and why Spurs have found themselves in such reduced circumstances and how it can be avoided next season.

At least they were spared the pain of seeing Spurs relegated on the day when north London arch-rivals Arsenal were lifting the trophy after their first Premier League title in 22 years. Arsenal's party was taking place across the capital at Crystal Palace.

For now, thanks to De Zerbi's inspiration and the failings of other clubs, Spurs are spared a day of reckoning. Not for long, however, because the temporary elation of fans will soon turn to anger.

How can a club that plays in such a magnificent stadium, has such passionate support and received around £74m by qualifying for the Champions League via that Europa League triumph, end up on the brink of the Championship?

Answer – bad decisions on and off the pitch. Poor appointments. Players playing poorly. At times this season, Spurs have resembled an unmotivated rabble – which is why the frantic pumping of fists and wild celebrations also felt uncomfortable and, yes, embarrassing.

The work must start now, but at least they will have De Zerbi to lead.

The Italian at least realised the urgency of the situation when he said: "It's now around 7pm, and around 8pm or 9pm we will start working towards next season."

De Zerbi added: "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."

He had been out on the pitch before the match, whipping up the Spurs fans.

He was then involved in a heated, angry verbal exchange with Everton substitute Seamus Coleman, celebrating wildly with supporters when Joao Palhinha scored the vital goal – after which he was rugby-tackled by Spurs substitute keeper Guglielmo Vicario.

Spurs were hampered this season by serious injuries to key creators James Maddison, who appeared as a substitute here, and Dejan Kulusevski, but this cannot excuse what has been served up.

Captain Cristian Romero thought better of missing this final game.

Rehabilitating after a knee injury, he had been expected to stay in Argentina to watch boyhood club Belgrano play River Plate in the Argentina Primera Division Apertura final on Sunday.

Will he be at Spurs next season? Will De Zerbi convince Romero's central defensive partner Micky van de Ven to stay at the club?

Van de Ven was looking forward as he said: "I'm really confident. With the right people now here - the right manager - I'm confident. Finishing 17th two years in a row is unacceptable for us."

Spurs have no time to waste in their quest to avoid a repeat.

De Zerbi, who took acclaim at the final whistle, said: "I'm very happy and elated for the performance of my players. They showed they are good people and top players. We played maybe the best game in my time here.

"We played against an Everton side who had a coach in David Moyes that maybe wanted to help keep West Ham up, but I'm sorry, he couldn't do that."

The Spurs team coach was greeted by thousands of fans lining the streets before the game.

"They were fantastic. We had to fight on the pitch to make them happy and proud of us," De Zerbi said. "We need to show more of this spirit in the future."

As the Spurs supporters poured into their favourite watering holes and haunts around the stadium, the inquisition, and plotting for the future, should have already begun inside.

Glory, Glory Tottenham Hotspur? Not this season. No glory here.