Tottenham Hotspur weathering a tumultuous storm as relegation looms large

If Tottenham Hotspur’s season so far can be equated to a vicious tornado that has tossed the club in every direction, like clothes in a washing machine, then the European Champions League has been the London club’s place of refuge.

Or at least this was the case until Spurs met Atlético Madrid in the Champions League round of 16 on Tuesday, 10 March. That encounter, which ended in a massive 5-2 defeat in the Spanish capital – all but shattered the team’s unlikely dream of being crowned European champions for the first time.

Three unforced errors within the first 15 minutes of the clash, two from inexperienced goalkeeper Antonín Kinský, saw Spurs on a slippery slope, from which they failed to recover. Spurs manager Igor Tudor yanked Kinský off after 17 minutes, replacing him with first-choice keeper Guglielmo Vicario.

Kinský the scapegoat

Tudor said he had selected Kinský to put pressure on Vicario on the back of Spurs losing their five previous matches. The experiment backfired, but what made Kinský’s night worse was the man who threw him into the deep end refusing to even acknowledge him after subbing him off.

It was Spurs players on the bench, Conor Gallagher, João Palhinha and Dominic Solanke, who decided to follow their colleague down the tunnel after his moment of darkness to try to console him.

“I need to apologise to the fans, to everyone. It’s incredibly difficult to explain, at least for the first 20 minutes. I’ve never seen anything like this in my life, things like this. It’s very strange to explain,” Tudor told Spurs’ media team after the defeat.

“I’m sorry for Toni (Kinský) as well. I need to talk to him, to preserve him, to help him, to help the team. It was not a nice thing, but Toni understands. He’s a very good goalkeeper, a very good guy,” Tudor said. “So, we need to stay together now, try to help each other in a difficult moment. It’s very difficult to explain. It’s like everything is going wrong.”

Tudor said his team needed to “keep working”. But it will take a miracle for them to overturn this deficit when the two teams meet in the second leg, which will take place in London on 18 March. This means their aspirations of a second successive European success story (in the Europa League) to gloss over domestic struggles have essentially evaporated.

European vs Premier League form

Despite sitting 16th in the Premier League table, Spurs came into the clash against Atlético in scintillating Champions League form. They finished fourth in the league phase to avoid the extra two matches that come with a round of 16 playoff.

They had a perfect home record in the league phase. Four matches, four wins, zero goals conceded, and 10 goals scored. In those home matches, they played teams such as Borussia Dortmund, Villarreal, Copenhagen and Slavia Praha. In fact, the only loss Spurs suffered during their eight-match group stage campaign was a 5-3 away defeat to reigning European champions Paris Saint-Germain.

But it was the London club’s domestic form that saw previous manager Thomas Frank lose his job in February 2026. Frank’s sacking came after a mediocre run of only two wins in 17 league matches.

Last season, Spurs finished one spot above the Premier League relegation zone. In spite of this horrendous domestic form, they were electric in Europe and managed to reach the final of the Europa League, beating fellow English side Manchester United 1-0.

Ironically, at the time of that final, both teams were languishing above the relegation zone. United’s performances have improved this season and they are chasing Champions League qualification after firing manager Ruben Amorim. He has been replaced by Red Devils old boy Michael Carrick.

Spurs, on the other hand, replaced last season’s manager Ange Postecoglou with Frank at the beginning of the season. Despite clinching Spurs their first major silverware since 2008, Postecoglou was the scapegoat for the team’s domestic woes.

Post-Postecoglou woes

Postecoglou’s high-risk, ultra-aggressive style was blamed for Spurs’ struggles last season, but the team’s troubles have continued. Now, those associated with the London club are once again concerned about their team potentially being relegated to the second tier of English soccer, painting a picture that it is not necessarily the managers who are behind Spurs’ struggles.

Nonetheless, even Tudor may not see out the rest of the season if this dismal form persists. Especially as his record since replacing Frank is now four games and four losses. In that period, the London-based side has let in 14 goals and scored a paltry four.

However, the Croatian has said he is not perturbed about his own future – he is more concerned about the club.

“It is not a topic for me. It is not about my job. It is about how to help the team. I’m always thinking about that,” Tudor said. “I will try to do my best, what a coach needs to do.”

Spurs’ boardroom reshuffles

Beyond what has transpired on the field of play, it is tough to figure out how Spurs have ended up in this position, for two seasons in a row. The Londoners have been a mainstay in English soccer and have always been competitive, even without winning anything.

The last time they were relegated from the top flight was at the end of the 1976-77 season. But as things stand, a shocking modern-day relegation is not far-fetched. Considering that the team finished building their Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as recently as 2019, relegation would plunge the team into a proper crisis.

They are still dealing with the debt that came with that construction project, hence the stadium is also used as a venue for major music concerts, boxing matches and rugby games, among other non-soccer events.

Despite Spurs fans calling for the move for several years before it finally came to pass in September 2025, Daniel Levy resigned after nearly 25 years as executive chairperson. Levy has since been replaced by Peter Charrington, who does not have the same ruthless soccer/business acumen or internal power as his predecessor.

Spurs have also appointed a CEO with the departure of Levy, recruiting former Arsenal chief Vinai Venkatesham. These changes in the hierarchical structure may have had an impact on the current status of the club. It’s not easy going from one driver to multiple co-drivers.

While Spurs may hope to miraculously overturn their first-leg round-of-16 Champions League defeat, they will probably not want to overdraw on their miracle bank as they fight to survive the intense relegation storm that they find themselves in. DM