Managerless, on their second interim boss, and hopelessly drift in the Premier League top four odds, 2022/23 has become a nightmare season for Tottenham, one that has developed comedic undertones of late courtesy of some ridiculous results.
At Newcastle, a horrendous opening 20-minute spell saw them breached five times, all to resounding mockery from rival fans.
Just one week later, Harry Kane and co clawed back a three-goal deficit at Anfield, with their £58m signing Richarlison finally breaking his league duck with a 93rd minute equaliser. Cue mayhem in the away end.
Ninety seconds later, came a seismic sucker-punch, Jota scoring the winner.
Add in a persistently leaky defence, a jaded fan-base feeling increasingly disenfranchised and detached from their club, and the likely imminent departure of Kane and it can safely be attested that these are the very worst of times for the North London giants, a nadir for a club that only four years back proudly competed in a Champions League final.
It is a sustained decline that began soon after that marquee event in Madrid when Tottenham’s chairman Daniel Levy sacked Maurico Pochettino and became oddly dead set on recruiting a coach with a ‘winning mentality’ above all other considerations.
Jose Mourinho was brought in for precisely this metric, his appointment ultimately proving to be disastrous. Later, serial title-winner Antonio Conte was lured to N17 to embed his serial title-winning mindset into the players and again it went terribly awry.
In between these two, Nuno Espirito Santo was drafted in and the less said about his brief tenure, the better.
So, when attempting to address Spurs’ slump, and highlight ways in which they can turn their fortunes back around, where better to start than with the most important decision the club must make in the coming months. Who gets the seemingly poisoned chalice that is the manager’s job?
Presently, Julian Nagelsmann is the favourite, an excellent choice should the club be able to entice the 35-year-old to a project in need of such drastic renovation.
Beyond the former Bayern boss, Luis Enrique is also prominent in the football betting alongside Vincent Kompany, his tracksuit still damp with champagne having guided Burnley to promotion.
Any one of these three men would provide significant impetus and direction to a club in woefully short supply of both.
Indeed, one of the most concerning aspects about Spurs’ worsening crisis is how utterly lost the players presently look. They are aimlessly flailing through games minus a clear identity.
Having a tactical blueprint to adhere to is just the start of course, and one that will no doubt quickly be implemented by the new manager.
From there, a critical transfer window awaits, with deadwood needed to be moved on and Harry Kane – in all likelihood – needing to be replaced. Even with the substantial funds his sale will raise, this is easier said than done.
A commanding centre-back is an urgent requirement also, and in this regard loudening rumours concerning an interest in Bayer Leverkusen stopper Piero Hincapie encourages.
Would you be open to #Tottenham appointing Xabi Alonso? 🇪🇸🤔 pic.twitter.com/qcm3848974
— The Spurs Watch (@TheSpursWatch) May 3, 2023
A fresh direction under an elite coach, a reimagined front-line, plus some solidity at the back won’t automatically transform Spurs. No-one would suggest such a thing.
But from these three changes, a wounded Tottenham can begin to heal.
*Credit for all of the photos in this article belongs to AP Photo*
