Tottenham Hotspur are facing a deepening crisis as their 91-year winless streak at certain grounds continues, with relegation now a real possibility. The club, which has not won at some venues since the 1930s, has taken just 12 points from their last 20 Premier League games, leaving them in a precarious position near the bottom of the table.
Under manager Igor Tudor, who has lost all four of his matches in charge, Spurs have shown alarming signs of decline. The team's performances have been described as 'evolving beyond defending, possession, goalkeeping, tactics, teamwork, and competence,' with fans and pundits alike questioning their ability to stay in the top flight.
The club's off-field focus on becoming a 'global cultural brand' has drawn criticism, with chief revenue officer Ryan Norys's planned talk at South by Southwest on 'how Tottenham is evolving beyond football' being cancelled after fan backlash. Critics argue that the club's commercial success, including a 40% rise in commercial revenue, has come at the expense of on-pitch performance.
Prediction models estimate a 20% chance of relegation, while bookmakers put it at around 40%, and many fans believe it is even higher. The prospect of dropping to the Championship has sparked dark humour among rival supporters, with Lincoln City fans singing 'Tottenham away, olé, olé' as they top League One.
Former manager Mauricio Pochettino's team, which challenged for titles, has been dismantled through poor recruitment since 2016. The club's failure to make successful signings, combined with a strategy that prioritised financial growth over football, has led to what some describe as a 'spectacular failure' reminiscent of historic collapses in English football.
For many, relegation would serve as a necessary reckoning. As one commentator put it: 'There must be accountability for failure if sport is to mean anything.' The question now is whether Tottenham can avoid becoming a cautionary tale for clubs that lose sight of their core purpose.
