The reverse defeat to Leicester in the 23rd round of the Premier League marked Tottenham's fifth consecutive match without a win in this competition. In those 5 matches, Spurs lost 4 matches in a row and are currently languishing in 15th place on the rankings. Without urgent changes, Son Heung-min and his teammates may have to face the relegation race as early as the 24th round.
After the final whistle at home, the person most "surrounded" by television cameras was Ange Postecoglou. However, the focus of criticism from Spurs fans was Chairman Daniel Levy. They want Levy to leave the club right now. In recent years, since finishing second in the Premier League in 2017, Tottenham have been on the decline. Maybe from next season, they will no longer be in the Big Six group.
After 23 matches since the beginning of the Premier League season, Tottenham have suffered 13 defeats. Only Leicester, Wolves and Southampton have tasted defeat more often. These are 3/4 teams at the bottom of the table. Although the gap to the relegation zone is 7 points, it is reasonable to put Spurs in the relegation group right now.
One of the reasons for this season's steep decline is the injury situation. The latest casualty is James Maddison, extending Tottenham's number of players who are unable to play to 11. However, in that context, they have only bought one new player since the beginning of the winter market. The person brought to Tottenham Stadium is 21-year-old goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky, a position that is not needed at the moment.
Responding after the defeat to Leicester, Postecoglou said that the team is trying their best to improve the remaining problems. Fans also feel this, so they have a certain sympathy for the Australian captain.
In fact, Daniel Levy has made a huge effort in the summer transfer market, bringing in three new players: Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall and Wilson Odobert. However, all three have failed to live up to expectations since arriving in North London. Despite these factors, Tottenham are still very poor defensively, having conceded at least two goals in each of their last five Premier League outings.
The number of injuries is also largely Postecoglou’s fault. Tottenham leads the Premier League in sprints and distance covered. The injury list is getting longer because the 59-year-old coach makes his players work too much on the pitch. Strangely, when the squad is devastated by injuries, Postecoglou still does not change this risky way of playing.
This has become a vicious cycle for Tottenham. They lose players to injury because of their fast-paced style of play. When the injured players gradually return, they play for a while and then get injured again. When forced to use Richarlison because Dominic Solanke was out, Ange Postecoglou could not use the Brazilian striker for the whole game. When he replaced Richarlison, Postecoglou was booed by the fans. He later explained that his student had a groin problem and could not take any more risks.
When asked about the future, Postecoglou is not sure anymore. The only thing he is confident about at the moment is the trust of the players. The Australian captain shared that if it were another coach in this context, that person would be isolated but not him.
Postecoglou has said Tottenham must do something special to save the season. In the Premier League, they should stop dreaming about Champions League qualification. All hopes now turn to cup competitions, especially the League Cup after they beat Liverpool 1-0 in the first leg of the semi-final at home.
