There is a specific kind of dread that settles over a football club when it realises the situation is beyond tactics. Tottenham Hotspur are there now. They are one point outside the relegation zone with nine games left and, as of Saturday, are strongly considering sacking Igor Tudor after just 28 days in the job.
If Tudor goes before Sunday’s trip to Anfield, he would become the shortest-serving permanent manager in Premier League history. That record currently belongs to Sam Allardyce, who lasted 30 days at Leeds in 2023. Tudor replaced Thomas Frank, who himself had failed to win a league game since the end of December.
The situation has actively deteriorated since Tudor arrived. He has lost all four games in charge — the first Tottenham manager ever to do so — and the club have lost six consecutive matches for the first time in their Premier League history.
The Supporters’ Trust issued a statement calling for “emergency action” after a 5-2 collapse at Atletico Madrid in midweek, a game in which Tudor withdrew teenage goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky after just 17 minutes following two errors.
“Tonight’s performance and result is a total disgrace,” THST wrote. “It’s symptomatic of the abysmal state of things at Spurs right now. From the January transfer window to the management appointments, the lack of leadership and the total absence of anyone with a Spurs pedigree informing these decisions.”
The decision to keep Tudor or move again is genuinely difficult. Names circulating include Glenn Hoddle, Harry Redknapp and even Allardyce in the short-term, with Mauricio Pochettino and Roberto De Zerbi the preferred long-term candidates for the summer.
Every day the situation festers costs money — and potentially the club’s Premier League status. A trip to Liverpool, of all places, is next. It is hard to see where a win comes from.
