What a slump, eh? In freefall in the PL, Tottenham lose their captain 😨 | OneFootball

Tottenham’s situation keeps getting more complicated.

De Zerbi’s debut — the third manager of the season — was not enough to prevent them from falling into the Premier League relegation zone with six rounds left. 

And this Monday (13) brought two pieces of bad news.

The first came from the medical department. A partial tear of the medial collateral ligament in the right knee of “Cuti” Romero, captain of the Spurs, was confirmed. 

He will be out for up to eight weeks.

He will miss the final stretch of the Premier League season and is now a real concern for the Argentina national team with the World Cup in mind. 

Still no win in the PL in 2026

Dropping into the bottom three was only a “matter of time” because of the run of poor results.

West Ham did their part by thrashing bottom-side Wolverhampton on Saturday to reach 32 points.

Tottenham needed to beat Sunderland on Sunday, but saw Mukiele shine and stayed on 30.

Confirming themselves as the new “owners” of 18th place. Nottingham Forest are 16th with 33.

In 15th, Leeds moved up to 36 points by beating United in Manchester this Monday.

That guaranteed the second piece of bad news of the day. 

Burnley (20) and Wolves (17) are virtually doomed. 

Tottenham have not won in the Premier League since December 28, when they beat Crystal Palace.

They have played FOURTEEN matches since then (all in 2026), with five draws and nine defeats.

In other words: they have taken only five out of a possible 42 points. An 11% return.

Meanwhile, their rivals in the relegation battle have performed better over the same stretch.

Taking into account only matches played since the turn of the year, West Ham — who were well behind in the standings — have collected 18 points, including five wins.

Forest — who are still alive in the Europa League — have picked up 15 (with three wins), and FA Cup semifinalists Leeds have 11 points with two victories. 

There are only six rounds left. And Tottenham still have a direct clash ahead. Their only “manageable” opponent is Wolves.

They still face: Brighton (H), Wolves (A), Aston Villa (A), Leeds (H), Chelsea (A) and Everton (H).

Roberto De Zerbi has the mission of saving Tottenham from embarrassment after Igor Tudor’s brief spell in charge of the London club.

European title, icon’s departure and injuries

The final stretch of last season had already been full of emotion for the fans.

Tottenham kept surpassing themselves and ended up winning the UEFA Europa League by beating Manchester United.

A final between teams that had far worse-than-expected Premier League campaigns. 

United finished 15th with 42 points. Tottenham were 17th with 38.

They were “fortunate” that the relegated trio (Leicester, Ipswich Town and Southampton) had even worse campaigns. 

Ange Postecoglou left the Spurs job even after the European trophy, and Thomas Frank arrived backed by strong seasons in charge of Brentford.

But things just “didn’t happen.”

Tottenham saw club icon Son leave to play in MLS. 

It was the departure of a leader on and off the pitch. And one who had contributed 11 goals and 11 assists in 2024/2025.

📸 ANTHONY WALLACE - AFP or licensors

The season began with major setbacks in the transfer market (Eze chose Arsenal, for example) and with the serious injuries to Maddison and Kulusevski — two key figures — who have still not played in 2025/2026. 

There is hope that both could be available for the final stretch of the season.

And there were more injuries too. Solanke has not managed to put together a long run, and Richarlison — the team’s top scorer in the Premier League — was also out for a significant period.

📸 Stu Forster - 2026 Getty Images

So West Ham and Leipzig players Kudus and Xavi Simons were the big bets. But they have not delivered as expected.

The Ghanaian has also been affected by injuries and could even miss the World Cup. And the Dutchman has not found the expected spark. 

Richarlison could suffer a 'double' defeat

The Brazilian No. 9 is, by far, Tottenham’s top scorer in the Premier League.

He has nine goals and three assists.

Centre-backs Romero and Van de Ven come next with four each. 

The other forwards who have scored the most are Solanke and Tel (three). Kolo Muani has just one goal. 

Despite still standing out, the Pigeon has seen the competition for a World Cup spot become extremely fierce.

📸 CARLOS JASSO - AFP or licensors

Igor Thiago is now battling Haaland for the competition’s top-scorer crown, João Pedro is shining at Chelsea, Matheus Cunha is contributing to United’s strong run, and Endrick has “been reborn” after moving to Lyon. 

All of them were present in the last international break.

Richarlison, meanwhile, was left out. He had been a strong candidate for a World Cup place thanks to his history with Ancelotti at Everton, but his situation has become more complicated. 

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.

📸 ANDY BUCHANAN - AFP or licensors