The Tottenham loss to Arsenal on Sunday, February 22, was yet another forgettable chapter in their Premier League campaign this season. Tottenham suffered a 4-1 defeat to the Gunners at home in Igor Tudor‘s first match in charge.
The Tottenham loss left them with 29 points in 27 matches and in 16th position on the Premier League table. They are only four points ahead of 18th-placed West Ham United and still very much near the relegation zone. The Tottenham loss further jeopardised their position in the league.
Here, we take a look at three reasons why Tottenham might get relegated this season.
#1. Too Many Tottenham Losses
The Tottenham loss to Arsenal was their 12th defeat in 27 league matches. This means that they have lost almost half the matches they have played in the Premier League this season. This is in continuation with their pathetic performance last season, which saw them finish 17th on the Premier League table with 22 defeats in 38 matches, thus barely avoiding relegation.
They had the excuse of playing too much adventurous football under Ange Postecoglou last season, which often led to their downfall. However, they have not been able to play attractive football either under Thomas Frank this season, which makes their non-performance even more unpardonable.
Spurs have often found it really difficult to even avoid defeat, let alone win matches. Hence, remaining in the Premier League might prove to be really difficult for them.
#2. Lack of Clarity in Terms of Tactics Becoming Evident in Tottenham Hotspur Loss
Tottenham Hotspur started with a 3-4-2-1 formation against Arsenal. That meant that they had three players in advanced positions in a match, which clearly had them start as the underdogs. In a match where they desperately needed a point, Tottenham started with too many players upfront.
As a result, Xavi Simons, who was one of the players playing behind the striker, did not often track back to help Spence deal with the runs of Bukayo Saka and Jurrien Timber. That meant that either Yves Bissouma or Pape Matar Sarr had to race to Spence’s support, which again meant that there were gaps in the middle of the park for Arsenal to exploit.
Conor Gallagher was the other player playing behind Randal Kolo Muani, when it was obvious that he was more comfortable playing in a deeper role. Both Simons and Gallagher should have spread out to the flanks to fill in for the wing-backs, who fell back to make it a back-five while defending. That would have made the formation a 5-4-1 while defending, which would have given Tottenham some extra cushion on the flanks.
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#3. Top Players Not Performing to the Expected Level
The back-three, led by Micky van de Ven, repeatedly failed to play Bukayo Saka offside, as the latter kept playing and running past the defensive line again and again. Moreover, despite being the left-sided centre-back, Van de Ven failed to go to Spence’s help in containing Saka and Timber.
Van de Ven is one of Tottenham’s most reliable players, but was hardly influential in the Tottenham loss to Arsenal. The same goes for Cristian Romero, who has often found him in the sidelines because of lack of discipline on the pitch.
Xavi Simons and Gallagher have not able to step up either, with Kolo Muani scoring only his first Premier League goal against the Gunners in the Tottenham loss. Unless there is a collective improvement, it will be difficult for the Spurs to stay afloat.
Main Photo
Credit: IMAGO / Sportimage
Recording Date: 22.02.2026
