Would Tottenham Hotspur have been better served not winning last season’s Europa League final?
The delight of ending the club’s lengthy trophy drought cannot be ignored, although neither can the depths the Lilywhites have plummeted since, with that night in Bilbao not exactly proving a launchpad heading into the current campaign.
Despite overseeing that European glory, Ange Postecoglou was sacked regardless, while Spurs haven’t necessarily made the most of their Champions League entrance, looking set to fall at the first knockout stage hurdle barring something of a miracle on Wednesday night.
On the Premier League front too, while a 17th-placed finish last term may have been somewhat misleading amid that run on the continent, the north London side are very much in the relegation picture right now, even after Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Anfield.
Even the man who scored the winner back in May has drifted off to pastures new, with the ENIC regime showcasing their willingness to act ruthlessly back in January after sending Brennan Johnson on his way.
How Brennan Johnson has fared so far after leaving Spurs
Johnson, albeit in scruffy fashion, netted the final goal of a promising individual campaign to secure that 1-0 win over Manchester United in Bilbao, etching his name into Tottenham folklore in the process.
That showpiece clincher had been a deserving one for a player who had faced criticism from his own supporters earlier in the season, having one stage deleted his social media accounts following a string of abuse directed his way.
The Europa League final looked like the Wales international enjoying the last laugh, notching his 18th goal of 2024/25 to finish as the club’s leading scorer in all competitions.
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Spurs’ Europa League final XI |
|
|---|---|
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Position |
Player |
|
GK |
Vicario |
|
RB |
Porro |
|
CB |
Romero |
|
CB |
Van de Ven |
|
LB |
Udogie |
|
CM |
Bissouma |
|
CM |
Bentancur |
|
RM |
Johnson |
|
AM |
Sarr |
|
LM |
Richarlison |
|
ST |
Solanke |
Just over six months later, however, following a muted start to 2025/26, the 24-year-old was sent packing to Crystal Palace, with Spurs unable to turn down an enticing £35m bid for his services.
Perhaps, amid their current predicament, the Lilywhites could well have done with Johnson still on board, although he isn’t exactly ripping up trees at Selhurst Park, failing to score in his first 14 games for the Eagles across all fronts.
Even shunted to a right wing-back berth last time out against ten-man Leeds United, Palace’s club-record signing simply hasn’t got going under Oliver Glasner, with last term’s fine goalscoring form now looking like something of an anomaly.
After two miserable domestic campaigns, Spurs have shown that no member of the squad – even last term’s top scorer – can be deemed unsellable, with ENIC needing to wield the axe again this summer.
Why Spurs need to sell this season’s Brennan Johnson
It remains remarkable to think that having sold club record scorer, Harry Kane, in August 2023, Tottenham didn’t actually go out to sign a direct replacement, with Johnson ultimately arriving on deadline day from Nottingham Forest.
He’s only just joined: The next Kane could end Richarlison’s Spurs career
Tottenham need to reshape their frontline even if they avoid relegation from the Premier League.
Dominic Solanke only joined a year later, with Daniel Levy and co leaving Postecoglou to rely on £60m man, Richarlison, as his leading centre-forward for that season.
Perhaps the sale of Kane, and the wayward succession plan, is where the start of Tottenham’s woes really begin, with even Richarlison’s bright recent form not enough to suggest he is the long-term answer to the club’s striking woes.
Signed from Everton back in 2022, the enigmatic Brazilian must still be considered “one of the worst signings in Premier League history”, as labelled by pundit Gabby Agbonlahor, having scored only 30 goals in 126 games since then.
Having netted 52 in 153 games for the Toffees, that record looks even worse, with injury notably restricting the 28-year-old to just five goals across all fronts last term.
As for the current campaign, the one-time Watford man has actually been a bright spark despite the club’s overall woes, with his latest effort on Merseyside taking him to ten for the season, nine of which have come in the league.
Like Johnson last term, Richarlison is the leading scorer at present, albeit with that perhaps a more damning indictment of his teammates, with the Brazil international not exactly proving prolific. Well, excluding at Anfield, that is.
Regularly plagued by injury throughout his time at N17, missing 40 games for club and country last season, as per Transfermarkt, the streaky striker can’t exactly be relied upon over an extended period.
Of course, his prior work at Everton would suggest he is the perfect figure in the short term to help lead Spurs’ fight against the drop, having previously scored six times in his final nine games of 2021/22 to help steer the Toffees to safety.
He could well be Tottenham’s in-house firefighter then, although in the long-term, an upgrade is needed in that centre-forward berth, and with just over a year left on his contract, this summer could be the perfect break point.
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Tottenham need to think outside the box in their battle to remain in the Premier League next season.