‘Big joke club’: Spurs eviscerated over fresh debacle as ‘toxic’ spiral’s ugly truth laid bare

They talked the talk, but Tottenham failed to walk the walk as they slumped to their latest humiliating Premier League defeat.

Spurs’ downfall has been an almost weekly talking point this season.

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They keep seeming to find new lows and they certainly did so with a 3-0 loss at home to fellow relegation-threatened club Nottingham Forest on Monday morning AEDT.

Billed as a six-point game with the winner able to give themselves some valuable breathing space from 18th placed West Ham, Tottenham’s fans turned up like it was a final.

They swarmed the high street outside their home stadium.

They set off blue and white flares as the team bus arrived at the ground and displayed banners with messages of encouragement and support.

Once inside the £1 billion venue, they were galvanised by a video montage on the big screens of club legends Teddy Sheringham, Jurgen Klinsmann, Harry Kane and Son Heung-min banging in goals.

When the highlights were done, current captain Cristian Romero appeared with a pre-recorded message: “We’ll fight for everything, all together.”

At first, the rev up seemed to have worked.

Tottenham carried forward the momentum they created in their 3-2 second leg victory against Atletico Madrid during the week for much of the first half.

But on the stroke of half-time, the script flipped as Forest’s Igor Jesus headed home from a corner.

“They could easily have had a comfortable lead before half-time. But they couldn’t score, Forest did, anxiety began to freeze brains and suddenly all they can see are the lines whooshing past as they plummet towards the Championship,” The Guardian’s Jonathan Wilson wrote.

“And this was them playing quite well; they may not do that too often in what remains of the season.”

The Telegraph’s John Percy shared similar sentiments from the press box.

“This had all the hallmarks of a team sliding into the Championship,” he wrote.

“In the first-half they were the better team but never capitalised on their moments, before collapsing as Forest punctured their weaknesses with ruthless efficiency.

“The wait before Tottenham’s next game, and a potential first league win of the calendar year, at Sunderland on April 12 promises to be excruciating.”

The optimism in the stands, in pubs and living rooms quickly turned to anger in the second half.

Former Tottenham midfielder Jamie O’Hara took to social media to dub interim manager Igor Tudor the “worst appointment in history”.

The Croatian is in the gun for having now earned just one point in five league games since taking charge.

But it was the curious decision to leave Xavi Simons, who Tottenham paid €60 million for last year, on the bench after a star performance midweek.

The 22-year-old was named in the UEFA Champions League’s team of the week as he scored two goals in a man of the match display against Atletico.

But he was not brought onto the pitch until the 68th minute mark with Forest already leading 2-0.

By the stage, Tottenham’s senior players were completely dejected.

Any belief that existed seemed to evaporate.

“This was the game that many had earmarked as decisive. However bad things got, there was still the knowledge for Spurs fans that they had a home game against a fellow struggler, one without a win in seven league games, with just two league wins all year. Win that and they would open clear water; win that and they could breathe easier,” Wilson wrote.

“But they did not win it, and so the mood by the end was a strange mix of panic and resignation.

“At least West Ham also lost and Leeds failed to win this weekend. Tottenham are not in the relegation zone yet.

“But they have still not won a game this year and there must be a thought of replacing Tudor during the international break, if only because it feels like something must be done and that is something.

“If the rolls of this dice aren’t working, try another dice.

“The abyss is drawing Spurs in, and there’s no sign of them being able to resist its call.”

Tudor did not front the media post-game with assistant coach Bruno Saltor stepping in after the manager was informed of a family bereavement.

Regardless, his days appear to be numbered and an international break is often a time where a club makes moves – Tudor’s predecessor Thomas Frank was removed in the previous international window.

In addition to O’Hara’s scathing assessment, Liverpool great Jamie Carragher said on Sky Sports that Tottenham would be better off without him.

There are plenty of pundits that share Carragher’s view.

“I think it’s impossible for him to stay. I really do,” former Tottenham midfielder Danny Murphy told BBC’s Match of the Day.

“I think it’s really difficult for the players to play in an environment that’s so deflated and toxic.

“The only way you can change that is either winning games which they’re not doing, or change a manager – what the fans want.

“If they keep him in charge – it’s five league games without a win. A new guy comes in, gets one win, all of sudden, it can turn quickly. I think it’s a risk worth taking and I think they’ll take it.

“The players don’t really look like they’re at it. They’ve had a couple of decent performances this week and maybe people thought that the corner had been turned, but confidence was low again after they conceded.

“He made two changes at half-time and that didn’t make them any better. If anything, they got worse as the second half went on.”

Former Spurs and England goalkeeper Paul Robinson was similarly critical of Tudor on BBC Radio 5 Live.

“I don’t see a structure. A game plan, or a way of playing. I don’t see a tactical idea,” he said.

“They look devoid of ideas, and a manager who is looking for something that he is yet to find, and no time to find it.”

Robinson added: “From Tottenham’s point of view, there was a lot of fighting spirit in the first half, encouraged by a jubilant crowd who wanted to support their team.

“But, when you go to support your team like that you have to give something back, which didn’t last.

“In the second half they were tactically weak, they were devoid of ideas, and the manager changed the personnel two or three times, and there was nothing there today to suggest that they can get out of that mess.”

Perhaps best summing up the mix of negative emotions surrounding Tottenham was The Telegraph’s George Chesterton did fan view article.

Chesterton went around the ground speaking to disgruntled and disheartened supporters to encapsulate how the threat of relegation is really impacting the most loyal fans.

Some of the answers were incredible.

“A Tottenham fan is not just supporting a club, he is entering a long-term relationship with hope deprivation, public humiliation and the occasional burst of beauty designed purely to keep the bond alive,” 40-year season-ticket holder Alistair MacCallum said.

While fellow Spurs supporter Matt Bush told Chesterton that it is the pity that stings most.

“I don’t like people feeling sorry for me,” he said. “I’d almost rather people abuse us. It’s this new kind of pity for us that I absolutely hate.

“An Arsenal-supporting colleague saw me come into the office and he just looked down. I said, ‘Come on, just give it to me’ and he said: ‘I’m sorry but I can’t do it to you.’ And that’s worse.

“We are a big joke club. There’s no pride in it anymore.”